Can you recycle toothpaste tubes?

Plastic-based toothpaste tubes have traditionally been a no-no on the recycling front, with their flexible layers of mixed materials a thorn in the side of council recycling schemes and diligent recyclers alike.

But change is happening.

It's still not as easy as chucking them in your recycling bin (unless you're one of the lucky few with a council waste scheme that accepts them via this route), but you can now drop off these and other tricky to recycle cosmetics at Boots stores as part of its Recycle at Boots scheme.

Toothpaste tubes have typically been made from a mixture of plastic and metal, to provide flexibility and help them hold their shape when squeezed. This makes them durable - and it's easier to squeeze every last drop out - but it also makes them a nightmare to recycle. 

Increasingly, the tubes are being made of recyclable HDPE plastic - but many local authorities still don't accept toothpaste tubes via kerbside recycling schemes.

Here, we explain what to do with your empty ones to ensure they get recycled.

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Is your toothpaste tube recyclable?

Big manufacturers are working towards all their toothpaste ranges being recyclable by 2025, so it's increasingly likely your toothpaste tube is made from recyclable materials.

Oral B says it has converted 70% of its tubes to recyclable plastic already, and plans to convert its whole range by the end of the year. Colgate and Aquafresh are in the process of switching over and plan to make all their toothpaste packaging recyclable by the end of 2025. 

If the big brands meet their targets, it'll be easy to tell if a toothpaste tube is recyclable by 2025, because it probably will be. But at the moment you'll need to check the packaging to find out. 

Look for a symbol on the tube to indicate it is. This may be the brand's own unique recycling symbol, or one of the established recycling symbols.

You might see the symbol for HDPE plastic, which is what recyclable tubes are usually made from. 

You can find out more about the different symbols at the Recycle Now website and about common errors to avoid in our guide to recycling.

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Not all councils accept recyclable toothpaste tubes

Checking your tube is made from recyclable plastic is the first step. But even if it is, your local authority might not be set up to accept it in its household recycling collection. 

Generally, local councils will advise you not to throw toothpaste tubes away in your recycling bin, without clarifying in their guidance whether recyclable tubes are an exception. This means there's a chance your toothpaste tube could end up in landfill even if it is technically recyclable. 

So what can you do? You can start by checking your local authority's recycling advice on its website. 

If you're told to throw toothpaste tubes in general waste instead of recycling, you can instead look for a local collection point where you can drop tubes. 

This used to be onerous, with few drop-off points, but things have moved on. Probably the most widespread and simplest to access option is the Recycle at Boots scheme. 

You'll need to sign up to the app and scan the products before you take them in, but there are rewards in the form of Boots advantage points, and the scheme takes a range of cosmetic products that can't go in your home recycling, so you can save up a stash and drop them off in one go.

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New options for hard-to-recycle cosmetics, medicine blister packs and more 

Cosmetics and medicines have long been a neglected area of recycling. We found confusing advice and slow progress when we investigated bathroom plastics in 2020.

But with the Boots recycling scheme, and a push for manufacturers to step up efforts to make packaging recyclable, it is getting easier. 

The Boots scheme says it accepts 'most' hard-to-recycle products, including:

• Travel minis
• Make-up eg mascara tubes, lipsticks, eyeshadow palettes
• Toothpaste tubes, pump lotions

Superdrug now operates a medicine blister pack recycling scheme, where you can drop off used packs in-store (along with old or unused medicine and used inhalers, which all pharmacies should take back).

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Plastic-free toothpaste options

If all of this sounds like too much of a headache, you could avoid plastic toothpaste tubes by buying your toothpaste in tablet form. 

Toothpaste tablets, a relatively new innovation, come in recyclable glass, card or tins, and are designed to be chewed to form a paste in the mouth. 

Their plastic-free packaging has appeal, but make sure they include fluoride, because a number don’t. 

Experts widely agree that fluoride is safe to use and key for dental health, as it helps to prevent tooth decay. 

Some tabs, such as Parla's toothpaste tabs (around £7 for 62 tabs in Boots, Sainsburys and Waitrose ), do contain fluoride. 

However, toothpaste tabs are still a relatively new and niche formula, and some studies have raised questions over whether fluoride, when applied via a tablet instead of in a paste, is as effective.

Francesca de la Torre, a writer and researcher at Ethical Consumer, also warned: ‘There is no reason why toothpaste tablets are automatically better for the environment than toothpaste.’ As always, there are lots of factors that play a part, and you can also buy toothpaste that comes in a jar if avoiding plastic is your biggest priority.

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