Can you recycle food and drink pouches?
Stand-up pouches (baby food, pet food, coffee, microwave rice) are multi-layer plastic film. Clean, rinsed-out pouches can go to supermarket soft-plastic collections, and English kerbside film collection arrives by March 2027 — but greasy or food-coated pouches are general waste because film can't be washed at the sorting plant. Some brands run take-back schemes (e.g. Ella's Kitchen with earn-points recycling).
Tips
- Cut pouches open to rinse them properly
- Baby-food pouch caps: too small alone — general waste or brand schemes
Which bin does it go in?
Soft-plastic points if clean; general waste if food-soiled Exact rules depend on your council — check its website or look up your postcode below.
Councils can use different containers and accepted-item lists.
Background: Plastic numbers 1–7 explained.
Also searched as: baby food pouches, pet food pouches, rice pouches, coffee pouches.
✓ Checked against current UK guidance: 14 Jul 2026. Spot an error or an out-of-date rule?