Recycling symbols explained
Please note that recycling collections and facilities may be affected by the COVID-19 situation. Please check with your local authority for updates about services. Read more
Packaging labels and recycling symbols are now appearing on lots of everyday items, and help us to identify how different types of packaging can be recycled.
The on-pack recycling label (or OPRL)
Look out for the following labels which appear on all sorts of packaging - from soft drink cans, to bread bags and plastic toiletry bottles. They will tell you whether the packaging is likely to be collected for recycling or if you can take it to your local recycling centre.
As local authorities do not all collect the same materials, the labels are based on what the majority collect, or do not collect.
If in doubt, enter your postcode into our Recycling Locator to find out what you can put in your recycling bin at home, where your nearest recycling locations are and how to recycle specific items such as mobile phones and textiles.
Remember: not all packaging will have a recycling label but this doesn't mean you can't recycle it.
This label is applied to packaging that is collected by 75% or more of local authorities across the UK, for example plastic bottles.
Recycle | Rinse
Rinsing packaging, for example food trays, ensures that any food residue doesn’t contaminate other materials, particularly if they are collected together with paper.
Recycle | Rinse | Lid/Cap on
Caps and lids under 40mm in diameter are too small to be captured for recycling. If you see this label, replacing the lid on the bottle ensures that it is captured and recycled with the main packaging component.
Don't Recycle | Remove Sleeve/Film
You may see this request on packaging where film or liners can be easily removed via a perforated strip without needing to use a knife, pair of scissors or other tool. There should be clear instructions how to do so, e.g. Peel here.
Other label instructions:
Flatten | Cap On
Flattening packaging such as beverage cartons or plastic bottles, and then replacing the cap, makes handling and transport more efficient.
Recycle with Bags at Large Supermarket | Don't Recycle at Home
If you see this label on plastic wrapping such as bread bags, you can recycle this packaging at plastic carrier bag recycling points in large supermarkets.
Check Home Collections
This label indicates that the packaging is not collected by all local authority kerbside collections. Check what you can recycle here
The following symbols can be found on a variety of packaging and explain a range of information: whether or not an item can be recycled, how to dispose of the item, or if it's made of recycled material.
The Green Dot
The Green Dot does not necessarily mean that the packaging is recyclable, will be recycled or has been recycled. It is a symbol used on packaging in some European countries and signifies that the producer has made a financial contribution towards the recovery and recycling of packaging in Europe.
This indicates that an object is capable of being recycled, not that the object has been recycled or will be accepted in all recycling collection systems. Sometimes this symbol is used with a percentage figure in the middle to explain that the packaging contains x% of recycled material.
Plastic resin codes
This identifies the type of plastic resin used to make the item by providing a 'Resin Identification Code'. It is represented with a 'chasing arrows' symbol surrounding a a number between 1 and 7 that defines the resin used.
This symbol asks that you recycle the glass container. Please dispose of glass bottles and jars in a bottle bank, remembering to separate colours, or use your glass household recycling collection if you have one.
This symbol indicates that the item is made from recyclable aluminium.
This symbol means that the product is made of steel.
All local authorities collect steel cans for recycling. Other steel or metal items can be taken to your household recycling centre.
This symbol from Keep Britain Tidy asks you not to litter. It doesn't relate to recycling but is a reminder to be a good citizen, disposing of the item in the most appropriate manner.
This symbol explains that you should not place the electrical item in the general waste. Electrical items can be recycled through a number of channels.
Products certified to be industrially compostable according to the European standard EN 13432/14955 may bear the 'seedling' logo.
Never place compostable plastic into the recycling with other plastics; as it is designed to break down it cannot be recycled and contaminates recyclable plastics. Plastics that carry this symbol can be recycled with your garden waste through your local authority.
In addition to the seedling symbol for industrial composting, you may see this one which means that it is suitable to be home composted.
Paper, card and wood
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) logo identifies wood-based products from well managed forests independently certified in accordance with the rules of the FSC.
Find out where and how to recycle
Enter your postcode into our Recycling Locator tool to find out: