It’s sad but true that Christmas is the most wasteful time of the year. Businesses and households in the UK generate much more waste at Christmas than any other time of year – from single use packaging to food leftovers, and everything in between. 

But hope isn’t completely lost. By making a few small changes, we can all reduce the amount of waste we produce this Christmas time. In today’s blog, we outline some of the most shocking Christmas waste statistics in the UK, and share some top tips for reducing waste over the festive period.

Christmas waste statistics UK

Christmas Decoration & Tree Waste Facts

• A hefty 12,500 tonnes of Christmas decorations are discarded in landfill each year.
• In terms of Christmas fairy lights, we can expect to find the equivalent length of 70,000 miles thrown away this year.
• Approximately 40 million Christmas crackers will be chucked on Christmas Day.
• Tinsel is made of single-used plastic so cannot be recycled, meaning it will inevitably end up in landfill.
• UK citizens cut down 8 million trees for Christmas each year. Unfortunately, around 6 million of these will find their way into landfill.
• As they decompose, Christmas trees emit 100,000+ tonnes of methane gas, which is a key contributor to climate change.

Christmas Wrapping Paper Waste Facts

• We anticipate that around 108 million rolls of wrapping paper will be thrown away this Christmas. This equates to 75% of the overall wrapping paper sent to landfill each year.
• If you take out all the Christmas wrapping paper waste and lay it out flat, it would stretch to 238,855 miles – the same distance of the Earth to the moon.
• Most wrapping paper isn’t suitable for recycling. It often contains glitter, is laminated, or is extremely thin, which means it can only end up in landfill.
• 50,000 trees are cut down to make Christmas wrapping paper each year, greatly contributing to deforestation.
• UK households will use approximately 40 million rolls of sellotape to wrap their Christmas presents this year.

Christmas Packaging Waste Facts

• The majority of Christmas packaging waste ends up in the landfill. Frustrating, over 114,000 tonnes of recyclable packaging waste is wrongly placed in the general waste bin over the festive period. 
• If you weighed the amount of plastic waste discarded during Christmas each year, this would equal the weight of 76,000 giraffes.
• When it comes to food packaging, we can expect to see 125,000 tonnes of waste thrown away this Christmas.
• 4,500 tonnes of tin foil will be used to cover leftover Christmas food in Britain this year. However, most tin foil is single-use, meaning it will find its way into landfill.
• We consume around 1 million mince pies each festive season, which creates an entire tonne of aluminium waste.

Christmas Food Waste Facts

• Wondering how much food is wasted at Christmas? Approximately 42 million plates worth of food waste will be generated this year.
• The average UK household spends £169 on food shopping in the lead up to Christmas. However, 7 in 10 people admit to buying more food than they actually need.
• 10 million turkeys are bought for Christmas dinners each year, but the majority of these will not be fully eaten.
• 263,000 entire turkeys will be thrown away this year, either from being spoiled, contaminated, or damaged.
• In terms of trimmings, 17.2 million sprouts, 7.1 million pigs in blankets, 9.8 million cups of gravy, and 9 million carrots will find their way into the bin.
• When it comes to after-dinner treats, Brits are expected to waste 7.5 million mince pies, 2 million kg of cheese, and 740,000 portions of Christmas pudding this year.

Tips for minimising waste over the festive period

One of the best ways to reduce waste this Christmas is to be mindful of what you’re purchasing. Think about whether you actually need to buy every item on your list, and consider how your actions may impact the environment. Some of our specific tips for reducing waste over the festive season include:

Minimising Christmas Decoration & Tree Waste

• Switch to zero waste Christmas decorations instead of tinsel this year, such as reusable festive garlands and colourful bunting.
• If you have unwanted decorations that are still in working condition, take them to a charity shop instead of throwing them in the bin.
• Replant your Christmas tree in your garden so you can reuse it again next year.
• Alternatively, you can take your Christmas tree to your household waste recycling centre for shredding and composting.
• If you’re opting for an artificial tree this year, dispose of it in the small appliance or plastic reuse containers at your local recycling centre.

Lowering Wrapping Paper & Packaging Waste

• Try eco-friendly wrapping paper alternatives this Christmas, such as brown paper with string and sprigs of holly.
• Ask for and give items to others that use less packaging. Consider making some homemade gifts or purchasing from a sustainable packaging company.
• Check whether your wrapping paper is recyclable before throwing it away. If it holds its shape when you scrunch it into a ball, it is recyclable. If it springs back open, it cannot be recycled.
• Remove any plastic bows and ribbons before recycling your wrapping paper. These can be easily reused for future wrapping.
• If you use glitter for your Christmas packaging, do not tip it down the sink as it can pollute our landfills and oceans. Instead, purchase eco-friendly glitter that can be stored and reused again.

Reducing Christmas Food Waste

• Plan ahead when purchasing food for Christmas. Think carefully about what you will realistically eat over the festive period and don’t buy more than you need.
• Buy loose fruit and vegetables rather than larger, cheaper bags that you are unlikely to get through.
• Get inventive with your Christmas leftovers and think about how you could reuse your trimmings in sandwiches, soups, and stocks.
• If you find yourself with extra food that your family is unlikely to eat, freeze it for a later date.
• Invest in a compost bin for disposing of your peelings and leftover fruit and vegetables.

Wrapping up

Christmas is a time for giving, which includes making a positive contribution to our environment. By choosing more sustainable options and being mindful of your consumption, you can give the gift of a greener planet this festive period. 

McCarthy Marland can help UK businesses and households reduce waste this Christmas. Our expert team can handle all your festive waste management needs – from skip hire and wheelie bins, to flexible Christmas waste collections. Get in touch today to discover how we can help support you this festive season.

As 2023 Fades, McCarthy Marland Rises Higher: A Year in Review and Glimpse into 2024

As the confetti settles and the clock strikes midnight, we at McCarthy Marland take a moment to reflect on a whirlwind year of growth, innovation, and commitment to our communities. While 2023 presented its fair share of challenges, it also marked a pivotal point in our journey, paving the way for an even brighter 2024.

2023: A Year of Transformation and Progress

This year, we proudly ushered in a new era by rebranding our Valley Trading Site, adopting the McCarthy Marland branding. This bold step unified our 3 sites stretching across Gloucestershire, Bristol, and Somerset under a single banner, showcasing a stronger, more cohesive brand that reflects our shared values and unwavering commitment to sustainability.

Our passion for progress translated into tangible advancements, most notably with our new fleet additions like the Kobleco machines. These powerful additions enhanced our capabilities and expanded our service offerings, allowing us to cater to your needs with even greater efficiency and precision.

Furthermore, we embraced digital innovation with the launch of PurGo, our VWS software. This cutting-edge platform streamlined our internal processes. A market-leading next-generation ERP waste management & recycling software system, relied upon by hundreds of customers to manage all waste collection and management processes end-to-end.

2024: Embracing Opportunities, Expanding Horizons

As we step into 2024, the future shines bright with opportunities. We are looking to support worthy causes through new sponsorships. The Wessex Truck Show is one of the first that have signed up for 2024 and others are in the pipeline.

We are looking forward to visiting and hosting various events. We are in the process of setting up a celebration where we will host and watch the England VS Ireland Rugby as both Managing Directors of McCarthy Marland, Kevin and Alex support the opposing teams.

A Collective Toast to the Future

We at McCarthy Marland raise a glass to our dedicated team, our loyal customers, and the vibrant communities we serve. Thank you for making 2023 a year of remarkable progress. As we turn the page to 2024, we stand united in our dedication to excellence, environmental stewardship, and a brighter future for all.

Happy New Year from McCarthy Marland

McCarthy Marland is delighted to have been chosen as the operator profile in the latest edition of Trucking Magazine. As a leading publication in the road and transport industry, Trucking is widely read across many key roles within the sector – from operators to drivers, and everyone in between. So when the team contacted us and asked to visit our recycling hub in Tetbury, Gloucestershire, we jumped at the opportunity…

How McCarthy Marland Has Been Revolutionising Recycling

For those of you who don’t know, Kevin McCarthy originally set up McCarthy Waste in 2001. Since then, the business has gone from strength to strength, and we now operate four full-service waste and recycling centres across the southwest. 

Upon the acquisition of our Gloucestershire site in 2021, we found that many of the vehicles we inherited were not up-to-scratch; and so we welcomed a pair of Scania R500s to complete our diverse fleet. 

Our Transport Manager, Kevin Shipway, commented: “We found we now had three ageing Volvo tractors to do the work of two trucks. So as one broke down, we had to swap that out and use the spare while the first was fixed, until another one broke…I had to find a better way [so] I contacted Scania South West and got the two R500s through the Scania Go programme.” 

As a result of the new Scanias, our drivers now have a renewed sense of pride in their vehicles that didn’t exist previously. Our Gloucestershire site has been rebranded, and all vehicles are now standardised, which will allow the McCarthy brand to continue growing for many years to come.

Interested in reading more? You can purchase your copy at your local newsagents or via the Trucking Magazine website.

As you travel the UK, the unfortunate sight of fly tipping — illegal dumping of waste like washing machines or overflowing bin-liners by roadsides — is increasingly common. This practice, intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic due to closed waste sites, remains a significant challenge for local councils, farmers, and landowners.

How much of an issue is fly tipping in the UK today? Let’s take a closer look…

What is Fly Tipping : Illegal Waste Disposal Explained

Fly tipping is defined as “the illegal deposit of any waste onto land that does not have a licence to accept it”. This includes liquid or solid household, industrial, commercial or ‘controlled’ waste. Littering differs from fly tipping and includes illegally disposing of materials that are related to eating, drinking and smoking.

The most common types of waste that are fly tipped in the UK include:

• Household waste
• Appliances such as fridge freezers and washing machines
• Building or demolition waste
• Garden refuse
• Vehicle parts or materials
• Hazardous waste such as oil, chemicals and asbestos

According to the 1990 Environmental Protection Act, local authorities and the Environment Agency are responsible for dealing with illegally disposed waste. Local authorities must clear fly tipped material from relevant land within their boundaries. 

The Environmental Agency deals with large scale fly tipping incidents i.e. more than a lorry load of waste or those organised by criminal gangs. These incidents could potentially pose a threat to human health or the wider environment.

Landowners are usually responsible for removing waste on private land, and these statistics are not generally reported by the UK government. Local authorities and the Environment Agency have legal powers to clear any waste from private land. They can then request reimbursement for any associated costs.

Fly Tipping Facts & Figures

England reports roughly 3,000 daily instances of fly tipping, summing up to a significant environmental and economic concern. Notably prevalent in urban areas like London, this illegal dumping results in considerable clean-up costs and environmental degradation.

The overall number of fly tipping incidents in England has increased by 13% from 2018-2023. The government’s most recent fly tipping report found that over 1 million incidents were reported between 2022-2023. 60% of these reports involved household waste, with 40% of instances occurring on highways. Most incidents of illegal dumping were equivalent to a ‘small van load’ (31%), closely followed by the equivalent of a ‘car boot or less’ (27%).

How Much Does Fly Tipping Cost the UK Economy?

Fly tipping comes at a detrimental cost to the UK economy. £13.2 million was spent on clearing illegal waste in England between 2022-2023. This was a huge increase of 23% from the previous year’s £10.7 million. Prosecution actions for fly tippers cost the UK economy £846,500 in 2022-2023.

These figures only take significant fly tipping incidents into account and don’t include smaller scale cases of illegal dumping. Therefore, we can assume the actual number to be much higher.

Join McCarthy Marland in Combatting Fly Tipping

The team at McCarthy Marland are dedicated to keeping our streets litter-free. Our Director, Alex Marland, regularly goes litter picking with his family to keep our roads clean and tidy. 

We offer a wide variety of waste management solutions that are designed to help protect our environment from potential fly tipping incidents. Whether you need a skip to remove waste following a renovation project or have hazardous materials to dispose of, our team can help. Get in touch with us today and keep our planet safe for future generations to enjoy.

As we step into 2024, the urgency to address our environmental footprint is more critical than ever. McCarthy, a leader in waste management, deeply understands the repercussions waste can have on our planet. With over 20 years of dedicated service, McCarthy is not just about managing waste; it’s about reducing it at the source and finding sustainable solutions that benefit our communities.

Understanding Waste Impact

The journey towards waste reduction begins with awareness. Every item discarded thoughtlessly has a life cycle of negative impacts—on landfills, wildlife, and even our climate. McCarthy champions the cause of not just managing but minimally generating waste, aligning with global efforts to preserve our environment for future generations.

Strategies for Reducing Household Waste

Minimising Food Waste: 

Planning meals and shopping smartly can drastically cut down food waste. Innovative apps like Olio connect communities, allowing us to share surplus food instead of disposing of it, embodying the adage, “One person’s surplus is another’s supply.” =

Not only can planning meals help reduce food waste, but it can also help reduce your overall food bill, meaning you are wasting less food and less money.

Recycling and Composting:

Recycling at home is getting easier with more opportunities from councils. DEFRA plans to make recycling even simpler in the next two years. 

By properly sorting your recycling, you can significantly reduce the landfill burden. While many councils now allow more plastics to be recycled at home, most do not take soft plastics such as crisp packaging and bags. These can now be recycled at local recycling centres and supermarkets. 

Composting is a great choice for organic waste such as vegetable and fruit peels and green waste from around the garden. Composting organic waste not only turns potential methane into nutrient-rich soil but can also help reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills. 

Donating and Repurposing:

Many of us have clutter in our homes. When we decide to clean up, our first instinct is often to throw things away. But instead of tossing everything, consider donating or selling items you no longer need. This could include clothes you don’t wear or furniture that is taking up space. By doing this, you can declutter your home and possibly help someone else in need. 

Donating to a local charity not only can help clear some space but can help to improve someone’s life making you feel even better. 

Sustainable Consumer Choices:

Opt for products with minimal packaging, reusable over disposable, and items made from recycled or sustainable materials.

When you need help, we’re here

No matter what choices you make, there will always be times when you need to clear a lot of waste and you need it gone fast, and for these times we at McCarthy have a number of solutions to help. 

Skip Hire. 

For bigger jobs, like house clearouts or big improvement projects, hiring a skip is not only a great way to get rid of all your waste in one time but can also be a fast way of clearing the waste so you can get on with the job. 

We offer a range of skips perfect for a wide range of jobs, from traditional builder skips for most jobs to drop-end skips, great for clearing heavier materials and using a wheelbarrow, or an enclosed skip for those times you want to make sure no one else is dropping their waste in your skip. 

Cage Tipper Hire

Our Cage Tipper Hire is great for jobs that are too big for the car but don’t require a skip. These can be single items or maybe a room clearance. Our Cage Tipper Hire can be booked the same day from as little as 30 minutes, and even better for you, our professional team will load the waste onto the tipper. 

If you are unsure what you need or just to discuss your options, just get in contact with our specialist team, and they will be more than happy to help.

McCarthy Marland is a proud supporter of Brain Tumour Support. As March is Brain Tumour Awareness Month here in the UK, we thought we would use this opportunity to talk all about our partnership with the charity and delve into the fantastic work they do in supporting people affected by brain tumours.

Who is Brain Tumour Support?

Brain Tumour Support is a charity for anyone affected by any type of brain tumour. Their mantra is “together we are stronger”, and they are dedicated to offering free individual and specialist support at any point from diagnosis, for as long as required. 

Every 90 minutes, somebody in the UK is diagnosed with a brain tumour. Brain Tumour Support helps hundreds of individuals and their families throughout the UK, providing much-needed advice and assistance, including emotional and practical support, specialist counselling, access to online support groups and financial guidance. After all, nobody should be alone when facing the effects of a brain tumour.

Throughout the month of March, as part of Brain Tumour Awareness Month, the charity is shedding light on brain tumours and the detrimental impact they have on countless families across the UK. They aim to reassure those affected with brain tumours that their dedicated team is here to help at every stage following a diagnosis.

McCarthy Marland & Brain Tumour Support: A Perfect Partnership

Our Transport Manager, Kevin Shipway, has worked with the charity for many years through his role as junior chairman of a local rugby club. He offered the rugby club’s resources to help raise funds for one of the players who had sadly lost his father to a brain tumour. 

When Kevin stood down from his role as chairman at the end of last season, he approached our director Kevin McCarthy to see if we could do anything to help support the charity. “Of course, Kevin jumped at the opportunity to support this fantastic charity. We have both sadly lost loved ones through brain tumours so this was something we really felt passionate about.”

Zest Graphics kindly agreed to apply Brain Tumour Support’s logo on our 130 cubic yard trailers free of charge. Our drivers have reported that the trailers are gaining lots of interest on a daily basis, and the charity is over the moon with the results. Emma McKeown, CEO of Brain Tumour Support, had this to say: “I would like to thank McCarthy Marland and you [Kevin Shipway] personally for your ongoing and outstanding support of us as an organisation. We are doing everything we can to come through this difficult time and ensure we are here for the future.”

Brain Tumour Support’s Urgent Call for Help

Brain Tumour Support is launching an emergency appeal to raise £200,000 in order to secure ongoing support for the charity’s future. Over the last six months, their services have seen a whopping 56% increase in demand, whilst the cost of living crisis has created a critical funding gap. They urgently need your donations in order to sustain their services, so they can continue to provide support for families facing a brain tumour diagnosis. 

Please donate today and help UK families move forward in the fight against brain tumours.

We all throw things away, but have you ever stopped to think about the fascinating world behind that discarded banana peel or plastic bottle? The waste management industry is more than just garbage trucks and Skips – it’s a complex ecosystem overflowing with surprising facts and innovative solutions. So, let’s dig (figuratively, of course) into some fun waste facts!

• Half of all food produced globally goes to waste! That’s a staggering 3,000 pounds of food chucked every second in the US alone.
• Love your plastic water bottle? Well, it might take up to 1,000 years to decompose!
• The Great Pacific Garbage Patch isn’t just a legend. This monstrous floating island of plastic trash in the Pacific Ocean weighs a whopping 80,000 tons, and it’s growing.
• Glass might seem like a recycling winner, but it can take over a million years to decompose! Luckily, it’s also infinitely recyclable, so go ahead and crush those bottles with gusto!
• E-waste, the fastest-growing waste stream, is full of hidden treasures. Recycling just one ton of smartphones can recover gold worth more than 120 times the amount mined from a ton of rock! Talk about turning trash into treasure!
• Biogas made from food waste can power homes and fuel cars. So, that discarded apple core could take you on a road trip one day! Visit GENeco to find out more as this is exactly what they do! https://www.geneco.uk.com

These are just a few of the many fascinating facts that lurk in the shadows of the waste industry. So, the next time you toss something away, remember the journey it takes and the impact it has. Maybe you’ll be inspired to reduce, reuse, or recycle with a newfound respect for the hidden world of waste management!

Today McCarthy Marland and Aasvogel participated in Christmas Jumper Day and raised funds for Save the Children.
We were so pleased to hit our target of £100 with still a few more donations coming in! We hope that our fundraising contributions will help children in need all around the world during this time of year.

You can take a look at our Fundraising page by clicking the link below:
https://christmas.savethechildren.org.uk/fundraising/CJD230018341

Thank you very much to all those who donated!

Take a look at our Christmassy knits!

We are proud to be sponsoring the 5 Valleys Fireworks on the 30th of November.

The Rotary Clubs of Stroud, Stonehouse and Nailsworth are hosting the largest
professional Charity Firework event across the Five Valleys and beyond.
Rotary have organised this ever-popular, family-friendly charity event for 30 years. The amazing
firework display is designed and choreographed to music by previous British firework champions of champions, Star Fireworks.

All profits go to support local good causes and charities with at least half the profits directed
towards young people in acknowledgement that the event originally started over 60 years ago at
Ebley Children’s Home.

This year’s event will support The Door Youth Project; Gloucestershire
Young Carers; Maidenhill School; The Marah Trust; Nailsworth Youth Club; Nailsworth Rotary
Community Fund; The Shrubberies School; Stroud District Foodbank; Stroud Rotary Community
Awards; Stroud Winter Response Programme and the Sunflower Suicide Support Group.

If you would like to view the 5 Valleys Sponsors you can do so by clicking the link below.

Sponsors | Five Valleys Fireworks

If you would like to go along make sure to book your tickets!

Book By the 27th Online for the Advanced Prices: Children £5 and Adults £10

Or Alternatively you can pay on the day: Gate Price – Children: £6, Adults £12

Book Online: Five Valleys Fireworks | (Ebley Fireworks) Gloucestershire’s premier fireworks event

On November the 1^st 2023 we are looking forward to launching our new branding across 3 of our sites; Somerton in Somerset, Albert Quay in Bristol and Tetbury in Gloucestershire.

Valley Trading will be rebranding as McCarthy Marland on the 1st of November. However, this change will not impact the regular operations of the company, which will continue as usual.

On the 10th of August 2022 McCarthy Marland Ltd was pleased to announce the acquisition of Hughes and Salvidge Holdings Ltd, owner of Aasvogel Skip Hire Ltd and Valley Trading Ltd, in a multi-million-pound deal.

Since then we have jumped from strength to strength as an expanding company. McCarthy Marland now runs waste collection services and recycling facilities across; Bristol, Bath, Somerset, Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire. Its subsidiary company, Westcombe Waste Ltd, also operates a landfill site in Somerton.

Would you like to know a bit more about each site?

Tetbury Recycling Centre in Gloucestershire

Based just outside Tetbury right next to the old Babdown Airfield. The Tetbury site are a reputable and innovative waste management site and disposal company who pride themselves in handling your waste both professionally and responsibly. Our waste disposal services are offered both domestically and commercially in the Gloucestershire, South Gloucestershire and Wiltshire surrounding areas. They can also offer a next day skip hire service for those last-minute jobs that need an urgent waste disposal unit.

With over 30 years of specialist experience in waste management, McCarthy Marland’s friendly team have a spectrum of alternative options to manage your waste, ranging from a fully integrated waste management programme to a single skip or caged tipper hire.

Bristol Recycling Centre

Our Bristol Recycling Centre, where we have been based since our beginnings in 2001, is conveniently located in St Philip’s Marsh just a stone’s throw from Bristol city centre.

The site is open to all commercial vehicles from small vans to large commercial collection lorries who can come in and tip alongside McCarthy Marland’s own fleet of collection vehicles. This facility has the capacity to handle around 80,000 tonnes of waste per year including mixed municipal waste, construction & demolition waste and industrial & commercial waste.

Third party customers can operate on a pay-as-you-go service on the day that you come to the site. Alternatively, you are welcome to apply for a credit account if you wish to tip more frequently.

Somerton Recycling Centre in Somerset

Located on the outskirts of Somerton in Somerset, the Somerton Recycling Centre is open to all commercial vehicles from small vans to large commercial collection lorries.

The site has a capacity of 20,000 tonnes a year and can accept a full range of commercial & industrial waste and construction & demolition waste as well as municipal waste.

As per our Bristol city centre site, third-party customers coming to our Somerton site can operate on a pay-as-you-go basis or can choose to open a credit account with us if more frequent tipping is required.

Aasvogel Recycling Centre in Wantage, Oxfordshire

With over 20 years specialist experience in waste management, Aasvogel’s friendly team have a spectrum of alternative options to manage your waste, ranging from a fully integrated waste management programme to a single skip or caged tipper hire.

Based in Grove, Oxfordshire, Aasvogel are a reputable and innovative waste management and disposal company who pride themselves in handling your waste both professionally and responsibly. Aasvogel waste disposal services are offered both domestically and commercially in the Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire and surrounding areas. They can also offer a next day skip hire service for those last-minute jobs that need an urgent waste disposal unit.

Aasvogel | Skip Hire, Recycling & Waste Management