A 26-year-old man has been taken to hospital following an explosion at a battery recycling plant near Walsall.

McDonald’s has come under fire from Zero Waste France for its recycling and waste management methods, with the group also calling for a transformation in how fast food chains manage and report their waste.

The aluminium can recycling rate has hit 70 per cent in the UK, but Alupro has warned that government ambition could 'compromise' future performance.

The Co-op has announced plans to move to 100 per cent recyclable plastic packaging for its own-brand products after a motion was passed unanimously at its AGM.

The EU’s main institutions will meet to discuss Circular Economy legislation for the first time next Tuesday after the European Council agreed a negotiating mandate that is believed to contain a 60 per cent recycling target for 2030.

The Conservative Party has reiterated plans for a 25-year environment plan and pledged to support better packaging and rubbish collection in a pre-election manifesto lacking any depth on resources or their management.

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation and The Prince of Wales’ International Sustainability Unit have launched a $2 million Innovation Prize to prevent plastic waste from entering the oceans.

The Liberal Democrats have promised to support the transition to a circular economy, pledging to introduce a Zero-Waste Act and a 70 per cent statutory waste recycling target for England in their manifesto.

A global coalition of retailers, producers, industry initiatives and cotton standards have come together from across the cotton supply chain to push sustainable cotton into the mainstream.

The UK is one of a number of EU member states refusing to publically back ambitious recycling and reuse proposals ahead of final negotiations in the European Council.