Alupro, the aluminium package recycling organisation, have partnered with Bradford Council to produce a campaign that encourages residents to recycle aluminium foil trays and household wrapping foil in their grey recycling bin alongside other metal packaging such as food/drink cans and empty aerosols.

The campaign focuses on:

How to recognise aluminium foil using the ‘Scrunch Test’ – scrunch the pack or foil in your hand, if it stays scrunched, it’s aluminium and can be recycled!

How to clean aluminium.

How to properly dispose of aluminium so that it causes no contamination or disruption to the recycling process.

You will see messages about aluminium recycling on roadside posters, recycling bin lorries, leaflets, social media and on our website.

It's surprising how much foil we use in our homes, from ready meal and takeaway trays to chocolate wrapping foil and the lids found on dairy products.   All the Council is asking is that the foil is free from any food residue - the quickest way to do this is to give the foil a quick wipe or a rinse in your washing up bowl (once you’ve done the dishes!) before you pop it into your grey recycling bin.

For smaller pieces of foil generally found as dairy lids or chocolate foil please scrunch these together to make a larger ball of foil (about the size of a tennis ball), it will keep the foil together and makes it easier to recycle

Steve Hartley, strategic director for Place said: “We are thrilled to be working in partnership with Alupro promoting our aluminium foil recycling service to the people of Bradford.   An average household can expect to use 182 foil trays and 144 metres of household wrapping foil each year and when you consider that we have over 210,000  households across the district, you begin to realise just how much foil is out there available for recycling.”    

Aluminium foil is endlessly recyclable and recycling uses only 5% of the energy it takes to produce foil from raw materials.   A ready meal tray, if recycled, could become another shiny aluminium product within just a couple of weeks.

Edith Grooby, recycling manager said: “Some items do look like foil but unfortunately are made from a metallised plastic film which cannot be recycled in the UK currently.   These include items such as crisp packets, drink/baby food/pet food pouches and ‘foil’ wrapping paper – please do not add these to your recycling bin.

“A simple way to test if a material is foil or not, is to do the ‘Scrunch test’. Scrunch the item in your hand.   If it stays scrunched its aluminium foil and can be recycled.   If it springs back open then it is metallised plastic film and cannot be recycled.”