Recycling
Recycling symbols on packaging explained
Packaging is covered in symbols, and only some of them tell you what to do with it. Here is how to read them.
On-Pack Recycling Label (OPRL)
The most useful label in the UK. It uses a simple arrow with plain words:
- Recycle: widely collected by UK councils. Put it in your recycling.
- Recycle, rinse or lid on: recycle, with an extra instruction.
- Don’t recycle: not collected for recycling. Put it in general waste.
- Recycle with bags at large supermarkets: soft plastics such as film and crisp packets can go to supermarket collection points.
Mobius loop
Three chasing arrows in a triangle. It means the item can be recycled somewhere, not that your council collects it. If there is a percentage in the middle, it shows recycled content.
Green Dot
A circle with two interlocking arrows, usually green. It means the maker has paid into a European packaging scheme. It does not mean the item is recyclable.
Plastic resin codes
A number from 1 to 7 inside a triangle of arrows:
- 1 PET: drinks bottles and many trays. Widely recycled.
- 2 HDPE: milk bottles and detergent bottles. Widely recycled.
- 4 LDPE: bags and film. Not usually collected at the kerb yet.
- 5 PP: pots and tubs. Widely recycled.
- 6 PS: polystyrene. Rarely recycled.
- 3 PVC and 7 other: rarely recycled.
Glass and metal symbols
The bottle bank symbol asks you to recycle glass. The steel and aluminium symbols identify the metal; both go in recycling.
Compostable symbols
The seedling logo means the item meets industrial composting standards. It does not mean it can go in your recycling, and most councils do not want compostable packaging in food or garden bins either.