Today is World Refill Day!

We can’t believe World Refill Day is finally here! 🥳 After months of preparation, the countdown is over…

World Refill Day is a global public awareness campaign to help get the issue of single-use plastic back on the agenda and help people live with less plastic! The theme for this year’s World Refill Day is ‘getting reusables back on the menu’ in the wake of the pandemic. Over the last 18 months, we’ve seen a huge increase in single-use plastic and many businesses have banned reusable cups and containers altogether.

Together, with our friends, partners and supporters around the world, we’re calling on big businesses and governments, telling them that we need to see action to tackle plastic pollution and reuse is the solution.

Today, we’ll be taking to social media to show the world how easy it is to live with less plastic and choose to reuse. Using the hashtag #WorldRefillDay, we’re encouraging people to get out, find refill options near them and share photos of them with their reusables – encouraging others to get involved too!

Our new research (commissioned in partnership with Friends of the Earth) found that plastic pollution is not only impacting the planet but our mental health as well.  Almost three quarters (72%) of UK adults said that the Covid-19 pandemic made them realise how important spending time outdoors / in nature is to their sense of mental wellbeing, BUT 1 in 2 UK reported feeling angry about seeing plastic/litter when spending time outdoors / in nature.

The pandemic has certainly thrown a massive spanner in the works when it comes to the progress we’d been making to move away from single-use plastic. From cafes and takeaways refusing reusables, to the overnight introduction of disposable PPE, plus the government’s delay on introducing a ban on the most polluting single-use plastic items and a UK Deposit Return scheme, the worry is that the increase in single-use plastic over the last 16 months will have serious impacts unless immediate action is taken to reverse the trend. The time to take action is now – it’s never been more important to choose to reuse!

Packaging from take-away food and drinks, including items like coffee cups, plastic bottles and takeaway containers are consistently the most polluting items on beaches and in rivers around the world [1]. It’s now understood that just 10 plastic products make up 75% of all marine pollution, and scientists say the pollution must be stopped at source [2].

Globally we drink around 1.6 billion cups of takeaway coffee every day [3] and make our way through a million plastic bottles a minute [4]. Research suggests that half a trillion will be sold annually by the end of the decade [5]. In the UK, single-use plastic water bottles make up more than half of all plastic bottle sales – an eye-watering 7 billion a year. A shocking 700,000 plastic bottles are littered every single day, despite us having some of the best quality tap water in the world [6].

The good news is, the most polluting items are also some of the easiest to replace with reusable alternatives and evidence shows that consumers are more than willing to play their part in reducing plastic waste, but desperately need more support from businesses and the government to make it happen.

A whopping 92% of UK adults are concerned about plastic pollution, and almost three quarters (74%) agree they would like to see more refill / reuse options available. But more than a third of those trying to reduce their single use (36%) have had a reusable container refused in the last 12 months. This is despite experts stating that reusables are perfectly safe to use, and only 5% of customers feeling that single-use items are safer than reusables.

Of the people who use a refill shop or take their own reusable items, 48% feel like they are reducing waste, with 35% saying it makes them feel more positive and 32% saying it feels like they are making a difference.

Check out the World Refill Day hub to get involved in the global movement and help power the Refill Revolution!