There are many types of plastic, but not all of them are recycled the same way. When you recycle, your items are taken to a recycling centre to be sorted and sent to be repurposed. The information on this page explains how the process works.

Types of plastic

There are three main plastics that are collected from your recycling:

• Number one or PETE (Polyethylene Terephthalate) used to make clear bottles.
• Number two or HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) is strong and does not break down in sunlight. It is usually coloured to make containers for products like shampoo, bleach or milk.
• Number 5 or PP (Polypropylene) is used for yoghurt pots, butter tubs and food trays. It is also used in hospitals because it can be sterilized.

The sorting process

When your recycling is collected, it is taken to a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in Crayford. It is the biggest MRF in the South-East England and sorts over 350,000 tonnes of recycling every year. Around 14,000 tonnes is sent here from our area.

The recycling is checked for contamination and sorted using:

• magnets to pick up metal cans
• lights and lasers to find different materials
• air jets to blow items into the right containers
• people to move material by hand

The separated materials are then packed into blocks and sent to be repurposed.

Contamination

Only clean and dry recycling can be sorted. Contaminated recycling cannot be recycled and is sent to landfill instead. Recycling may be contaminated if it contains:

• big plastic items like garden chairs
• nappies or sanitary products
• hardcore or garden waste
• textiles or ceramics
• rubber or polystyrene
• food waste
• black sacks
• wood

Recycled material distribution

Recycling happens all over the world. Recycled materials could go anywhere, but it is usually kept in the United Kingdom. Recently, UK materials have been distributed in the following ways:

• 90% of paper and card stayed in the UK. 10% went to France.
• 90% of HDPE stayed in the UK. 10% went to Belgium.
• 100% of steel and aluminium cans, PETE, HDPE and glass stayed in the UK.

Further questions

You can learn more about the recycling process in this short video from the Crayford MRF.

If you have any questions or if you would like more information, email recycling@maidstone.gov.uk.