Single-use items & packaging
'Disposable' items are everywhere these days, from take-aways to online shopping. The true cost of producing these items is starting to add up - extracting raw materials, manufacturing, storing and transporting them - just for them to end up as landfill or litter.
By switching to reusable alternatives where possible, and making sure that we recycle what's left, we can continue to enjoy the things we love, whilst reducing the harm to our environment and communities that depend on it.
88%
of people in the Highlands are concerned with the amount of packaging generated by the things that we buy.
50%
of all plastic produced is intended for just one use. 36% of that is packaging.
91%
of packaging waste currently ends up as landfill or litter.
HCWP Legacy
On this page, learn more about our activity and impact over the HCWP period, including case studies and links to further resources.
Our impact
Single-use-items and packaging webinar
Hear directly from partners about their work on this topic, from local recycling solutions for cardboard and glass; local trials of reusable alternatives to single-use items; as well as more regional work to pilot cup recycling and returnable packaging and promote reuse and refill. Featuring Broadford & Strath Community Company, Thurso Community Development Trust, Velocity Café & Bicycle workshop and Keep Scotland Beautiful.
Recorded in March 2025.
Case studies
Jump to: Local waste initiatives | Local reuse projects | Regional packaging interventions
Recycling and reusing local waste
Broadford & Strath CC explored a number of options for reusing cardboard waste on the island, ultimately diverting around 6,000 kg of cardboard per year from landfill, with uses ranging from reuse as packaging, to uses in composting and as fuel. Read more here.
Broadford & Strath CC also found a use for local glass waste, converting it into sand for the maintenance of local paths, recycling 640 bottles, or 200 kg of glass waste in the first two months at a cost saving of £500 in path building and maintenance costs.
Meanwhile in Thurso, the Cycle of Wool project explored ways to make good use of the abundance of wool in the area that often goes to waste; from crafting to innovations for path maintenance and gardening.
Local reuse projects
Velocity Café and Bicycle Workshop implemented a 40p charge on single-use cups and food packaging, along with a campaign and retailing reusable alternatives, as a way of promoting reuse in the café.
Broadford & Strath CC trialled reusable pizza boxes in the closed loop setting of a campsite, to reduce the around 400 disposable boxes that are used and thrown away each season. Read more here
Thurso CDT switched to reusable packaging for their monthly Meals on Wheels service, diverting around 75 disposable plastic tubs and bags from landfill per delivery. Read
Thurso CDT worked with their local high school to replace single-use food tubs used in cooking classes with reusable alternatives where, in combination with their #beasolution campaign, they increased reuse rates by 45% and diverted 135 single-use tubs from landfill over the two-month pilot period.
Regional packaging interventions
Keep Scotland Beautiful collaborated with the National Cup Recycling Scheme to pilot their innovative Cup Box solution for recycling single-use cups in the remote setting of the Highlands. Twenty-three boxes were deployed across 18 locations, with the potential to divert around 10,000 single-use cups from landfill.
Keep Scotland Beautiful also led on a raft of activities to promote refill and reuse, including a collaboration with City to Sea to set up local Refill Schemes as well as a reuse campaign and a returnable food and drink packaging pilot with Vytal.
We collaborated with City to Sea to establish six local Community Refill Schemes in the Highlands, supporting our work to reduce packaging waste and help more people to #ChooseToReuse and #TryRefill.
Find out more about your local scheme and get involved.
More resources
A move away from single-use items is not always straightforward. We all have a part to play. Read more about what can and is being done at different levels to make the switch.
Top tips for switching to reusables
Moving away from single-use items can be easier than you think. Check out this handy guide from City to Sea of items you can buy and make, reminding us that reusables last for longer, saving us money in the long run as well as reducing our environmental impact.
Ditching Disposables
The Ditching Disposables initiative from Zero Waste Scotland worked with businesses to reduce use of single-use items that were the subject of a 2021 ban, including plastic straws, stirrers, cutlery and plates, as well as polystyrene cups, lids and food packaging. Their report shares learnings from the pilot around what worked best.
Food-To-Go Report
This report from City to Sea provides useful insights into the current state of packaging use in the on-the-go food and drink sector and what can be done to change things.
Know your cup: Compostable and biodegradable cups are an increasingly popular alternative to single-use paper cups for businesses and consumers wanting to make greener choices. However, these come with their own challenges.
This handy guide, from the James Cropper cup recycling mill, provides a useful overview of the current landscape of single-use cups on the market and what to do with them after use.
Extended Producer Responsibility
Keep up to date with the latest information from the Scottish Government on plans for the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme due to be introduced in 2024.
The UK Plastics Pact
The UK Plastics Pact brings together hose responsible for creating plastic waste to find solutions for reducing its scale and impact. Pact members aim to: eliminate problematic plastics, reduce the total amount of packaging on supermarket shelves, stimulate innovation and help to build a stronger recycling system in the UK.
