A new national recycling campaign, Pledge 4 Plastics, has been launched today (8 September), in a bid to increase the collection of plastic packaging for recycling.

Led by member-based plastics recycling organisation RECOUP and supported by partners including the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP), the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra), Coca Cola Enterprises, Marks & Spencer, Unilever, Closed Loop Recycling, Valpak, Kent Resource Partnership, and PlasticsEurope, amongst others, the steering group (pictured, right) aims to ‘tackle the serious issue of plastic packaging recycling in the UK’ and help to meet future packaging targets set by the UK government (which some in the industry say are ‘unachievable’).

Indeed, according to the group, with recycling levels plateauing and government setting ‘challenging recycling targets for packaging waste for the period 2013-17’, plastic packaging recycling levels will ‘need to double over this five-year period’.

Pledge 4 Plastics has identified that increasing household plastic packaging recycling ‘will be pivotal to achieving these targets’ and that, without intervention, the UK would ‘fall short’, meaning costs to businesses for recycling plastics packaging would rise.

As such, the campaign is urging people to make a pledge to recycle one extra plastic bottle a week, as the most recent figures for plastic bottle recycling show that householders recycled just 58 per cent of their plastic bottles.

Those who register their support to Pledge 4 Plastics in September (either through the website (pledge4plastics.co.uk), Twitter (@pledge4plastics), or Facebook (pledge4plastics) could be in with a chance of winning one of a thousand limited-edition phone covers (comprising 80 per cent recycled plastic bottles) designed by interior designer Abigail Ahern. The covers (pictured, right) are compatible with iPhone 5C/S and Samsung S5 phone models.

To help provide a ‘consistent’ message about plastic packaging recycling, the campaign has also developed a toolkit (which can be downloaded from the Pledge 4 Plastics website), including template communications artwork (such as posters, online adverts and public transport adverts) as well as facts and figures about plastic packaging recycling and background.

It has already been has been sent to all local authorities in the UK and a large number of stakeholders including, brand owners, retailers and environmental bodies, in the hopes that they disseminate the plastic recycling message.

By diverting more material to recycling, Pledge 4 Plastics hopes to ‘deliver economic and environmental benefits for waste management companies, local authorities and reprocessors’.

‘Re-igniting the UK public’s commitment to recycling’

Speaking of the campaign, Stuart Foster, CEO of RECOUP, said: "The Pledge 4 Plastics campaign aims to encourage people to think and act differently and rewards them for doing so. We want to highlight how great things can come from recycling unwanted plastic. The fantastic phone cover that Abigail Ahern has designed for the campaign is made with recycled plastic and provides just one example of what can become of recycled bottles."

The project has been welcomed by Resource Minister Dan Rogerson, who said: “The UK has made tremendous progress on recycling over the last 10 years, building a stronger circular economy and greener society, and this reflects a lot of hard work from industry and local authorities, alongside a desire from residents to do more.

“This is another great initiative to boost the recycling of plastic packaging which has our full and ongoing support – I’ve already made my pledge and encourage others to sign up to do their bit.”

Partner bodies have also voiced their support, with Chris Dow, CEO of plastic bottle recyclers Closed Loop Recycling, saying: “Pledge 4 Plastics is all about re-igniting the UK public’s commitment to recycling in order for us to win the war on waste, maximise this valuable resource and boost [the] UK’s green economy.”

Marcus Gover, Director of WRAP, added that the organisation was ‘pleased’ to be supporting Pledge 4 Plastics as “raising awareness of the variety of things that plastic bottles and packaging can be recycled into will help householders to understand the part they are playing by recycling more things more often”.

Councillor Paul Barrington-King, Chairman of the Kent Resource Partnership (KRP), also commented, saying: “This important Pledge 4 Plastics campaign sees the KRP join forces with the private sector in the effort to meet the nation's plastics packaging recycling targets.

“Achieving 1.2 million tonnes of recycled plastics by 2017 is a mighty challenge. The good news is the UK is already 60 per cent there, and the KRP and many others are keen to help achieve the rest.”

Find out more about Pledge 4 Plastics.