5 tips to improve and increase your recycling in 2023!

The household recycling rate in Switzerland was 53% in 2019, which sets a good example compared to other European countries. However, there is still a lot of work to be done to increase these figures and improve our country's efforts to preserve our earth's resources and the environment. In this article, we have put together a few tips that are affordable for everyone to have a better understanding of the solutions available to you when you want to dispose of/recycle some of your items at home. This article complements the articles entitled "Big Sack: the ultimate solution for emptying your home" and "Go green in 2022: 5 reusable items to adopt in your home".

Reduce, reuse, recycle

Here are three words that are easy to keep in mind and even easier to put into practice: reduce, reuse and recycle. In short, this means avoiding creating waste wherever possible. However, if you do create waste, reuse it and/or recycle it instead of sending it to landfill. This short recycling guide from Migros will help you understand what is collected, where to throw it away and how the material is recycled.

We advise you to set up a proper system to sort your waste in the best possible way. The use of collection bins and shelves is a good way to keep your sorting under control and in order. Use labels and make sure you always know where to dispose of your waste.

• Pet and glass: keep PET and glass bottles in closed bins/crates to avoid leakage
• Waste paper: try to reduce your paper consumption by switching to digital newspapers
• Batteries: some devices require less energy than others. Therefore, you can use used disposable batteries from these powerful appliances in less powerful appliances.
• Biodegradable waste: use a compost bin to avoid odours. Avoid biodegradable compost bags because, apart from their practicality, their delayed decomposition in the compost is detrimental to the transformation of green waste into black and smelly compost.

For large events with a number of people, you can also call on Big Sack to provide you with 1m3 bags to sort your waste and create a real ecopoint at home. Order them on our website, fill them with your various household waste and call us for collection. We can even provide you with labels with the name of the respective waste.

 Find out what you can and cannot recycle

This may seem obvious, but in reality, a survey carried out in 2020 by COSEDEC on what happens to kitchen waste after it has been sorted revealed that one in three people in the French-speaking part of Switzerland lacks knowledge about this recycling channel! So take the time to find out what can and cannot be recycled. The SwissRecycling website is very useful for answering your various questions.

Buy recycled products

Where you can, buy recycled products. Some materials can be recycled several times without loss of quality and thus reduce the use of virgin materials. This process keeps our environment clean and healthy. In addition, it creates jobs for people in need. Recycling helps everyone involved to achieve a better quality of life. In addition, buying recycled products also saves you money. Commonly recycled items are paper, glass, plastic and metal materials. Recycled products are widely available and you will start to spot them in shops and online as soon as the idea comes to mind.

Composting kitchen waste

Composting is the process of breaking down organic waste into biodegradable soil. It is essentially an environmentally friendly way to get rid of unwanted materials. The benefits of composting are numerous; it promotes sustainable living and prevents the emission of harmful greenhouse gases. In essence, composting is a great way to make our environment cleaner and greener. If you don't have a compost bin yet, now is the time to create one.

All kitchen scraps can be composted, including meat products, bones and fish. Green waste from gardens and yards can also be composted. However, not all types of organic waste can be composted. For example, carbon-based waste from plastic or polystyrene containers cannot be processed with soil.

Throwing food waste on a compost heap means it will rot and create a beautiful fertilizer for your garden!

To find out more about creating compost at home, you can read this article from Hornbach.

Donate unwanted items

Instead of throwing away unwanted or no longer needed items, where they will end up in landfill, give them to friends and family, donate them to a charity shop or list them on a website such as eBay, Anibis or Ricardo.

However, much of the waste that comes out of your home over the years may not be able to be recycled. Some of your furniture will even be too damaged to make any use of it.

Big Sack will take care of all your waste with a range of Big Sacks. Order your bag, fill it with your various items and call us for collection.