Wash a waste! – we use 61kg of shower gel each year

A new report reveals UK homes produce 1.5k tonnes of single-use plastic waste per year and only 9% of this is recycled

UK homes produce 1,500,000 kilograms of single-use plastic a year, with only 9% of this being recycled.

That is the key finding from a study by Bower Collective, which reveals that 64% of this single-use plastic is found in bathrooms.

According to the study, each bathroom sees an average of 851 single-use plastic products come and go each year – leading to annual waste of around 31kg. Shower gel or body wash alone reportedly accounts for more than 61,000kg of waste in the UK per year.

The utility room is considered the second worse room in homes for plastic waste, contributing 8.1%.

Fabric softeners, detergents and cleaning sprays make up most of the plastic pollutants and Bower Collective claims this room is responsible for 131,000kg of the UK’s yearly single-use plastic bill.

The total waste produced per year equates to the weight of 1,600 Mini Coopers, which the study claims can be tackled if more people think of environmental impacts before they buy.

Make sure you check out the latest Net Hero Podcast episode:

Latest Podcast