UK Waste Management and Recycling Market Report 2023
€ 1,800 (Excl.Tax)
Description
Stay ahead of the curve and future-proof your business with Mintel’s UK Waste Management and Recycling Market Report 2023. Our full report is packed with consumer-led market intelligence, the latest waste management and recycling industry trends and consumer behaviours affecting your business. Get a 360° view of the waste management market, including market size, share and forecasted growth to help you align your business strategy with the needs of your audience.
Below, we’ve handpicked the key insights analysed in the full report and summarised the core topics.
Topics Analysed in this Report
- Recent trends in waste arisings, local authority waste collections and treatment.
- How the government plans to achieve its circular economy ambitions and the implications for the waste management and recycling industry.
- Financial performance of key industry players.
- Market drivers for investment in the UK reprocessing and recycling industry.
Waste Management and Recycling Industry Outlook
High costs put pressure on waste management companies. Investment in required waste recycling and reprocessing infrastructure is curtailed by continued uncertainties surrounding the implementation of key waste reforms, including consistency of collection proposals and food waste management.
Waste Management and Recycling Industry Trends
Commitment to plastic recycling
The waste management and recycling industry has committed considerable capital investment to develop the UK’s plastic recycling and reprocessing capability. Growing demand for recycled materials underpins investment in recycling technology. There is a strong industry focus on developing recycling technology to help tackle plastic packaging waste, including developing techniques that tackle difficult-to-recycle plastic packaging formats.
Reduced landfill success
The volume of waste disposed of at landfill has reduced year-on-year over the last two decades, reflecting progress being made in the growth of alternative end-of-waste options, landfill tax hikes and increased reliance on energy recovery. In 2021/22, 8.1% of all local authority-collected waste was sent to landfill, down from 12.5% in 2017/18.
To learn how to connect with your audience, purchase our full UK Waste Management and Recycling Market Report 2023. Discover lucrative innovation opportunities to help your business grow during times of financial uncertainty.
Leading Brands in the Waste and Recycling Industry
Biffa, Veolia, Suez, Viridor, FCC.
Additional Features Included with Your Purchase
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Expert Insights from a B2B Analyst
This report, written by Claudia Preedy, a leading industrial analyst, delivers in-depth commentary and analysis to highlight trends in the waste management and recycling market and add expert context to the numbers.
The commitment to a more circular economy, underpinned by the implementation of major waste reforms, will be central to developments in the waste management and recycling market over the coming years. An ongoing lack of clarity over the final design of key measures of the government’s waste reforms, including consistency in recycling collection, means that required investment in the UK recycling and reprocessing infrastructure remains on hold. Companies in the waste management and recycling industry now need to future-proof their services and must be flexible to accommodate the changes expected in the coming years.”
Claudia Preedy
Principal Analyst
Table of Contents
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Overview
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Covered in this Report
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Executive Summary
- The five-year outlook for the UK waste management and recycling sector
- Figure 1: Waste management and recycling outlook, 2023-28
- The market
- Waste arisings return to pre-pandemic levels
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- Figure 2: Waste arisings in the UK, by sector, 2018-22
- Local authority budgets hit by high inflation
- Figure 3: England budget revenue expenditure on waste management, net current expenditure, 2022/23 (£ million and % of total)
- Incineration with EfW dominates waste treatment
- Recycling rates continue to stagnate
- 8% of local authority-collected waste sent to landfill
- Figure 4: Local authority-collected waste treatment, England, ‘000 tonnes, 2017/18-2021/22
- Significant investment in UK recycling infrastructure vital to creating a circular economy
- Companies and brands
- UK waste management services industry dominated by the ‘Big Five’
- M&A activity
- The five-year outlook for the UK waste management and recycling sector
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Issues and Insights
- Government must act on delivering waste reforms to boost recycling rates and investment in recycling infrastructure
- Outlook for EfW capacity is less certain
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Waste Arisings
- Construction and demolition waste accounts for around 45% of total waste generation
- Commercial and industrial waste volumes almost back at pre-pandemic levels
- Household waste accounts for around 17% of waste arisings
- Despite cost-of-living crisis shallow upward trend in household food waste continued in 2022
- Figure 5: Waste arisings in the UK, by sector, 2018-22
- Construction output
- Figure 6: Market size for construction, 2017-22 (£ billion)
- Figure 7: Market size for construction at 2017 prices, 2017-22 (£ billion)
- Household waste
- Figure 8: UK household waste arisings, by nation, 2017-21
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- Figure 9: Composition of waste from English households, 2022 (000 tonnes)
- Composition of dry recycling from English households
- Figure 10: Composition of dry recycling from English households, % of total, 2012 and 2022
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Waste Collection
- Local authority waste management expenditure
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- Figure 11: England budget revenue expenditure on waste management, net current expenditure, 2019/20-2022/23
- Around half of local authorities run in-house municipal waste management service
- Local authorities waste services procurement
- Local authority waste collection
- Local authority-collected waste
- Figure 12: Local authority-collected waste generation in England, 2018-22
- Household waste collection frequency
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- Figure 13: UK household residual waste collection, by frequency, 2020
- Recycling collection services
- Figure 14: Percentage of local authorities collecting each dry material, by material, 2020
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- Figure 15: Percentage of local authorities collecting each dry material, by material, 2020
- Food waste collection services
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- Figure 16: UK household food waste collections, by nation, 2020
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Waste Treatment
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- Figure 17: Local authority-collected waste treatment, England, ‘000 tonnes, 2017/18-2021/22
- Waste infrastructure
- Figure 18: Number and capacity of permitted final treatment facilities, UK and England, 2018
- EfW capacity
- Carbon Capture and Storage seen as critical to decarbonise EfW sector
- Significant investment in UK recycling infrastructure is vital to creating a circular economy
- Decline of landfill
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- Figure 19: Landfill capacity trends in England, 2011-21
- Recycling rates
- Household waste recycling rates
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- Figure 20: UK household waste recycling rate, by nation, 2016-20
- Packaging waste recycling rates
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- Figure 21: Packaging recycling and recovery targets, 2019-23
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- Figure 22: UK packaging waste and recycling/recovery rate, by material, 2020 and 2021 (tonnes)
- Government must do more to boost recycling rates
- Issues surrounding plastic waste exports
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Market Forecast
- Implementation of waste reforms set to shape market development
- Figure 23: Waste management and recycling outlook, 2023-28
- Forecast waste arisings
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- Figure 24: Forecast of waste arisings in the UK, 2023-27
- Figure 25: Forecast of household waste arisings in the UK (adjusted for COVID-19), 2023-27
- Forecast methodology
- Implementation of waste reforms set to shape market development
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Market Trends
- Waste reforms and move to circular economy drive investment in waste infrastructure
- Current industry focus is on boosting the UK’s plastic recycling and reprocessing capabilities
- Technological advancements
- Waste management sector targets net-zero emissions
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Market Drivers
- Government’s programme of waste reforms
- Plastic Packaging Tax
- Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging
- Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers
- Consistency in recycling collections
- Separate weekly food waste collections
- Circular Economy Package
- UK Plastic Pact aims to create circular economy for plastics
- WRAP sets out roadmap to recycle flexible plastic
- Landfill tax hikes
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- Figure 26: Landfill tax rates, £ per tonne, 1 April 2019-23
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Industry Structure
- Industry development
- M&A activity
- Changes in the structure of the industry
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- Figure 27: Analysis of changes in the structure of the waste management industry, number of outlets and businesses, 2018-22
- Structure by turnover
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- Figure 28: Analysis of the financial structure of the waste management industry, £’000 and number of businesses, 2021 and 2022
- Structure by employment
- Figure 29: Analysis of the employment structure of the waste management industry, 2021 and 2022
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Company Profiles
- Biffa
- Biffa acquired by Energy Capital Partners
- Biffa acquires Viridor’s collection business and recycling assets
- Other recent acquisitional activity
- Financial performance
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- Figure 30: Financial analysis of Biffa Plc, 2018-22
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- Figure 31: Turnover analysis of Biffa, by business segment, 2022 (£ million and %)
- Company strategy
- European Metal Recycling
- Financial performance
- Figure 32: Financial analysis of European Metal Recycling, 2017-21
- Company strategy
- FCC Environment (UK)
- Financial performance
- Figure 33: Financial analysis of FCC Environment (UK), 2017-21
- Company strategy
- Renewi
- Financial performance
- Figure 34: Financial analysis of Renewi, 2018-22
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- Figure 35: Turnover analysis of Renewi, by geographic segment, 2021 (€m and %)
- Company strategy
- Suez Recycling and Recovery UK
- Veolia/Suez merger
- Financial performance
- Figure 36: Financial analysis of Suez Recycling and Recovery UK, 2017-21
- Company strategy
- Veolia Environmental Services Group (UK)
- Financial performance
- Figure 37: Financial analysis of Veolia Environmental Services Group (UK), 2017-21
- Company strategy
- Viridor
- Pennon Group sells Viridor to KKR
- Disposal of assets
- Financial performance
- Figure 38: Financial analysis of Viridor, 2018-22
- Company strategy and outlook
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Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
- Abbreviations
- Methodology
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Further Sources and Contacts
- Trade associations
- Trade magazines
- Trade events
About the report
This market report provides in-depth analysis and insight supported by a range of data. At the same time, introductory and top-level content is provided to give you an overview of the issues covered.
Market
Mintel provides a range of market information, frequently through the category level, including market size and forecasting, complete with market drivers that illustrate the forces that shape a category or market.
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Mintel’s proprietary consumer research provides our analysts with the attitudinal and behavioral data used to provide valuable insight to topical issues.
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Mintel provides overviews of the top brands and manufacturers, and uses consumer research to explore attitudes and reactions to brands, as well as insight into what will resonate with consumers.
Data
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*databooks not available with UK B2B Industry reports.
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