Nampak, producer of plastic milk bottles, commissioned the survey which found that 316,054 tonnes of plastic bottles were collected for recycling in 2012, and of those, 96,396 tonnes were HDPE milk bottles.
Steve Morgan, technical manager at Recoup Recycling, said while the figures were encouraging, more needed to be done.
“Later this year the aim is to further increase collection levels of all plastic bottles as part of a national plastic recycling communications initiative Recoup are leading on. We’re looking forward to continuing to work with Nampak to improve plastics recycling in the UK.”
Eric Collins, managing director of Nampak Plastics, said recycling of plastic milk bottles has been steadily increasing over the years, mainly due to increased awareness.
Improved education about recycling, country-wide initiatives such as Annual Recycle Week, and improved collection processes, all help contribute to a more sustainable environment than just a few years ago.
“Whilst consumers increasingly recycle end products, packaging manufacturers must play their part and consider resource-saving and ease of recycling at the design stage. This has been our focus at Nampak Plastics for the last six years, and we will continue to innovate where possible, pushing the boundaries further in 2014,” he added.