If you've been looking at switching to more sustainable packaging, you've probably come across the term "kerbside recyclable" — and you may have assumed it means the same as "recyclable." It doesn't, and the difference matters more than most businesses realise.
This guide cuts through the confusion so you can make packaging decisions that actually deliver on your sustainability commitments, rather than ones that just look good on paper.
The Problem: "Recyclable" Doesn't Always Mean What You Think
Almost anything can be described as technically recyclable somewhere, under the right conditions, at the right facility. But that's a very different thing from something being collected from your customer's doorstep and actually processed through the UK recycling system.
When a packaging supplier says a product is "recyclable," they may mean it can be recycled — not that it will be. The distinction is important, particularly as UK businesses face increasing scrutiny over environmental claims under the Competition and Markets Authority's Green Claims Code.
Kerbside Recyclable vs Technically Recyclable
Kerbside recyclable means the material is accepted in the vast majority of UK household recycling collections — the bin or box that gets collected from the pavement every fortnight. For your customers, this is the only recycling that reliably happens.
Technically recyclable materials — certain plastics, composite materials, biodegradable films — may require a trip to a specialist facility, a supermarket drop-off point, or a specific industrial process. Most consumers won't do this. Most of it ends up in general waste.
For business packaging, the practical question is: when your customer has finished with your packaging, will it actually get recycled? If the answer depends on them making a special effort, it probably won't.
Compostable vs Biodegradable — Not the Same Thing
These two terms are often used interchangeably but mean very different things in practice.
Biodegradable means the material will eventually break down — but gives no indication of how long that takes or what conditions are needed. Some "biodegradable" plastics require industrial composting conditions to break down at all; in a landfill, they behave much like conventional plastic.
Compostable means the material will break down into non-toxic components within a specific timeframe, but again — home compostable and industrially compostable are very different. Industrial composting facilities run at temperatures your garden compost heap never reaches. If a product is only industrially compostable, most of your customers have no practical way to compost it.
The honest answer for most businesses is that kerbside recyclable paper and cardboard packaging is more reliably sustainable than compostable or biodegradable alternatives, simply because the collection and processing infrastructure already exists in the UK.
What UK Businesses Need to Know About the Plastic Packaging Tax
Since April 2022, UK businesses importing or manufacturing plastic packaging that contains less than 30% recycled content are liable for the Plastic Packaging Tax, currently set at £228.82 per tonne (April 2026). This applies to packaging components, not just finished goods, and includes packaging you import already filled with product.
If you're still using virgin plastic packaging — void fill, mailing bags, bubble wrap — it's worth reviewing whether switching to paper-based alternatives would reduce your liability as well as your environmental impact. Our paper mailing bags and eComWrap paper bubble wrap are kerbside recyclable alternatives that side-step the tax entirely.
The Packaging Changes That Make the Biggest Actual Difference
Not all sustainable packaging switches are equal. Here's where to focus:
Switching from plastic mailing bags to paper mailing bags makes an immediate, meaningful difference — paper is kerbside recyclable, widely understood by consumers, and removes plastic from your outbound packaging entirely.
Switching from plastic bubble wrap to paper void fill or eComWrap similarly removes a problematic material from your packaging mix without compromising protection.
Switching from plastic packing tape to paper tape means your cardboard boxes can go into recycling intact, without customers needing to strip the tape off first.
Switching packaging materials without changing tape or void fill is a half-measure — it's worth looking at the whole picture.
Where to Start
If you want to reduce your packaging's environmental impact but aren't sure where to begin, the most useful first step is to audit what you're currently using and identify which elements are and aren't kerbside recyclable.
We're happy to help with that conversation. Take a look at our recyclable packaging range, or get in touch and we'll work through your current packaging setup with you.
What Does Kerbside Recyclable Actually Mean for Business Packaging?