One third of UK councils now collect drinks cartons at the kerbside according to the Alliance for Beveridge Cans and Environment UK.

According to the trade body this is following a ‘significant investment’ from its members into the recycling infrastructure.

The trade body, which represents packaging manufacturers Tetra Pak, Elopak and SIG Combibloc, has reported that a total of 130 out of 406 (33 per cent) UK councils are now offering kerbside collections of the material.

Richard Hands, chief executive of the Alliance for Beverage Cans and Environment UK, said: “After significant investment in recycling from our members – Tetra Pak, SIG Combibloc and Elopak – the beverage carton industry has shown what can be achieved when building a nationwide recycling infrastructure from scratch, in less than four years.”

Drinks cartons cannot be recycled in the UK at present but are exported to other European countries – most commonly Sweden – where the paperboard and non-fibre materials are separated for use in paper-making or energy recovery.