Striving for zero glass waste

Zero Waste Week 4 – 10 September

When you throw something away, it doesn’t magically disappear. It goes to landfill, an incinerator or litters the land or ocean. But when you recycle, you reduce waste.

Glass is an incredible material that can be recycled over and over again with no loss of quality. When you use glass packaging, there doesn’t have to be any waste. You can only guess how many times your bottle has been reincarnated or what type of bottle or jar it was before. It’s a message brought home in a new campaign that features rapper and comedian Doc Brown and Britain’s Got Talent contestants The Bottle Boys. The guys surprise young drinkers in a bar with their fun take on the endless lives of glass bottles and jars and why you should recycle them.

Take a look:

But did you know that each year, around half of the bottles and jars sold in the UK don’t get remelted back into glass? This is a real shame. Glass manufacturers are actually very keen to have your old bottles and jars because they use them to make new containers. This uses less virgin raw material, less energy and reduces CO2 emissions. So if you throw away glass packaging, it really is wasting a valuable resource.

We want everyone to get the glass recycling habit, which is why Friends of Glass is delighted to join millions of people from more than 70 countries taking part in Zero Waste Week. The week is a great way to learn more about how to reduce the waste you produce. Rachelle Strauss first organised the week nine years ago. Her passionate message has helped many people with their goal to reduce the waste they produce – and now she wants to help you too!

Here are some tips to help you be part of the Zero Waste Week experience by reducing glass waste:

Get recycling – The recycle locator will tell you how you can recycle glass in your area, whether glass is collected from your door or at your local glass banks.
Get practical – Set up a convenient place to collect your old glass bottles and jars as you go along. A box in the kitchen is ideal to remind you to recycle all you can.
Get talking – Join the global network and share tips from the Zero Waste Week Facebook page with your friends and get more people on board.
Get reading – You can read more about Zero Waste Week on the official website.