189 kg of garbage is thrown out by EU residents every year

Bottles, disposable cups, cardboard boxes and packaging bags are thrown away on an incredible scale by the inhabitants of the planet every day. In total, residents of the European Union throw away 84 million tons of household waste.

Every day, more packaging of personal items ends up in the recycling bin. According to new data published by Eurostat, in 2021 every resident EU on average, 188.7 kg of packaging material was thrown away.

This figure has increased by:

• 10.8 kg compared to 2020
• 32 kg compared to 2011.

In total, EU residents threw away 84.3 million tons of packaging in 2021, of which:

• 40.3% paper and cardboard
• 19% plastic
• 18.5% glass
• 17.1% wood
• 4.9% metal.

Of the nearly 189kg of packaging we throw away every year, 35.9kg is made of plastic. As noted, only 14.2 kg (or 39.7%) is sent for processing. Everything else ends up in the environment, causing enormous damage.

There is little consolation in the fact that compared to 2020, plastic packaging recycling per capita increased by 9.5%. At the same time, its per capita production also increased by 4%.

In 2021 some countries recycled 50% (or around) the plastic packaging they produce. These were Slovenia (50% recycled), Belgium (49.2%) and the Netherlands (48.9%). And vice versa, least recycled (less than a quarter) Malta (20.5%) France (23.1%) Sweden (23.8%).

Greece ranks 16th in Europe as we recycle around 38% of plastic packaging. Of the nearly 189 kg (of all materials) we throw away each year, on average almost 120 kg are recycled. This number is an average, given that each country produces different amounts of such materials depending on the size of its population.

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