A binman known as The No 1 Binman has warned households that polystyrene should generally go into general waste rather than plastic recycling. With more than 200,000 followers and nearly four million likes on TikTok, he said the material is often mistakenly placed in the plastic bin because it looks similar.
"Make sure you put it in your general waste bin because so many people get confused and put it in the plastic," he said. "It's an easy mistake to make, they're both made of plastic. But most places it's just not worth recycling because it's made of mainly air."
Recycling rules vary by council
His advice is broadly supported by Recycle Now, which says polystyrene is not commonly recycled and should be placed in the waste bin. However, households should check their own council's rules because recycling services differ between areas, meaning the correct disposal method is not necessarily identical across the UK.
The No 1 Binman also warned people against putting polystyrene in paper recycling: "Some people, for some reason, like to put it in a paper bin. I know it comes with paper in a box, but still do not ever put it in your paper bin."
Check before you bin
Recycle Now advises people to use its recycling locator to check exactly what can be put in household recycling collections in their area. Expanded polystyrene packaging is particularly likely to cause confusion, as it is often used to protect electrical goods and other products inside cardboard boxes.
North Yorkshire Council says expanded polystyrene packaging cannot be recycled and should instead go into rubbish or general waste at a household recycling centre, while Buckinghamshire Council lists polystyrene packaging among items suitable for general household waste.
The binman's advice was to check locally rather than assume every council operates the same system. "General waste, check with your council. You might be one of the only councils which do accept it."
He also suggested that some householders could take polystyrene to their local tip, although what is accepted varies between recycling centres. Recycle Now says its recycling locator can be used to find out whether an item is accepted locally and where it can be taken.
So, while the packaging may look like an obvious candidate for the plastic recycling bin, the advice from national recycling guidance is to check first rather than guess. It could stop bin collection workers rejecting your kerbside waste.
