The same goes for chocolate wrappers.
15:28, 05 May 2026Updated 08:46, 06 May 2026
The UK gets through more than eight billion packets of crisps a year — but do you know how to recycle them?
A binman has given the definitive guidance on which bin you should use to dispose of your empty crisp packets and chocolate wrappers. The UK gets through more than eight billion packets of crisps a year, according to Statista, which also projects we will be eating more than 11 billion a year by 2030. That is more than 30 million packets a day.
The UK is also one of the top five chocolate-consuming nations in the world, meaning we are also getting through a vast number of chocolate wrappers. But while the recycling of food packaging in the UK has advanced significantly in recent years, there is still not a straightforward way to recycle crisp and chocolate wrappers.
Today’s crisp and chocolate packets and wrappers often have a number of layers and are usually made from polypropylene or polyethylene with an aluminium coating. You may hear this more commonly described as “soft plastics”. And the means to recycle this type of material at scale is still not widely available, despite most local authorities now offering the collection of hard plastics for recycling (though recycling policies and methods differ between local authorities). Environmental charity WRAP says: “There is still change that needs to take place for widespread roll-out of recycling collections at kerbside for plastic bags and wrappings.”
However, recycling policies do vary from council to council across the UK and some councils are able to collect soft plastics to recycle so you should always check what your local council does and does not recycle.
And Britain’s best-known refuse collector, who is known as The No1 Binman on TikTok where he shares advice with more than 170,000 followers, has now explained what to do with crisp and chocolate packets.
“They do not go in any of your recycling bins,” says The No1 Binman, whose real name is Ashley. “A crisp packet, yes it can be recycled but you need to take it [to a supermarket]. Most supermarkets take them. And I know that means going to the supermarket with empty crisp packets to put them in their bins but if you’re asking the question of where they get recycled — that is where.
“Otherwise, you can put them in your general waste bin and they will get collected there. But if you’re looking to recycle crisp packets, then it goes in the bins in the supermarket. It’s the same for chocolate wrappers, because it’s such a thin plastic and made from different materials.”
In 2023, the BBC reported how crisp packets dating from the 1960s washed up on a beach in Norfolk, a potent reminder of the longevity of plastics. The discoveries included pre-decimalisation packets of Golden Wonder crisps, marked with a price of 5d, as well as 2d Spangles sweets.