Allison, Ayşe Lisa;
Băitanu, Alexandra;
Purkiss, Danielle;
Lorencatto, Fabiana;
Michie, Susan;
Miodownik, Mark;
(2024)
Enabling desired disposal of compostable plastic packaging: an evaluation of disposal instruction labels.
Frontiers in Sustainability
, 5
, Article 1376519. 10.3389/frsus.2024.1376519.
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Abstract
Introduction: This study evaluated a series of disposal instruction labels for their effectiveness in enabling the desired disposal of compostable plastic packaging. // Methods: Mixed methods were employed: an online experiment and a survey. UK citizens (n = 1,008) completed a task, sorting packaging labelled with various disposal instructions into one of three bins (general waste, food waste, and recycling). They also selected a preferred compostable disposal instruction logo and provided reasons for their preference. // Results: Items lacking disposal instructions followed intuitive disposal practices: items with a common practice of being compostable were most frequently disposed of into food waste; items with a common practice of being recycled were most frequently disposed of into recycling; and items with a common practice of being disposed of with general waste were most frequently disposed of with general waste. “Do not recycle” was effective at diverting compostable plastic packaging to general waste. The label “compost with food waste” had the highest rate of correct disposal in the food waste bin when compared to the control group and to the “compost” disposal instruction. “Compost with food waste”, however, was not statistically different from “put with food waste” or “recycle with food waste”; all three led to statistically similar disposal rates in the food waste bin. Qualitative findings showed that participants preferred clarity and directness in the disposal instructions logo denoting compostability. // Discussion: Findings suggest that citizens struggle to identify compostable plastic packaging from appearance alone. Clear direct disposal instruction wording can help enable the appropriate disposal behaviours. Qualitative findings showed that participants preferred clarity and directness in the disposal instructions logo denoting compostability. The depiction of simple yet unambiguous and instructive symbols was valued and likely to be the better instigators of behaviour change compared with associative symbols. Implications for labelling policy are discussed.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Enabling desired disposal of compostable plastic packaging: an evaluation of disposal instruction labels |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.3389/frsus.2024.1376519 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.3389/frsus.2024.1376519 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © 2024 Allison, Băitanu, Purkiss, Lorencatto, Michie and Miodownik. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. |
| Keywords: | Behaviour change, circular economy, compostable plastic, consumer behaviour, disposal, intervention, plastic packaging, recycling |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences > Clinical, Edu and Hlth Psychology UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Mechanical Engineering |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10201721 |
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