UK households buying rolls of wrapping paper for Christmas warned

Nearly half a mile of wrapping paper gets thrown away or burned on a fire in a lifetime, it has been warned, as UK households are urged to brush up and buck up their non environmentally-friendly habits ahead of the Christmas season.

Fewer than half of Brits (44%) think to check whether the wrapping paper they buy is recyclable – with 31% simply chucking it all in a black bin bag after Christmas is over. And a fifth, of 2,000 festive adults polled, will chuck the wrapping paper on the fire – with almost half a mile of wrapping paper simply being discarded over a typical adult's lifetime.

The average Brit plans to wrap 17 presents this Christmas, using 10.5 metres of wrapping paper in total – and only a third will attempt to re-use wrapping paper from previous Christmases. It also emerged half of those polled are trying to be more sustainable this Christmas, with 25% believing their eco-efforts increase over the festive period.

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A spokesman for Quality Street, which commissioned the research after switching its plastic wrappers to paper, said: “Wrapping gifts is such a big part of the run-up to Christmas. It helps you get into the festive spirit, and makes you excited to watch your loved ones unwrap their presents on the big day.

“The research revealed the sheer amount of wrapping paper many people use in their lifetime, and that a lot of it can go to waste.” The Quality Street spokesman added: “We’re proud to have a long running association with Christmas and, with our move to paper packaging, it will soon be as easy to recycle our wrappers as it is to enjoy the delicious sweets inside.

“To celebrate our move, and for a bit of festive fun, we’re putting on the first ever “Quality Street Christmas Wrapped Up” pop-up, where fans can bring an item to be gift wrapped in limited-edition wrapping paper made from the same recyclable paper as our sweets.”