Enough wine to fill over 400 ice rinks

REPAK has released a series of interesting facts and figures relating to the annual splurge of Christmas.

As consumers are urged to keep smashing Christmas recycling targets, Repak has predicted that each household generated 44 kilos of used packaging over Christmas.

This adds up to a whopping 74,000 tonnes in total.

However, Repak is hoping to collect and recycle between 55 and 60 per cent of the household used packaging generated over the holidays.

Repak’s 2,400 members have been hugely supportive of their programme and have helped to facilitate its success as Ireland continues to meet and exceed its targets.

Other figures put forward by Repak suggest that Irish households exchanged over 12 million Christmas gifts and consumed so much chocolate that there was enough calories converted to kilowatt hours to run 860,000 houses’ electricity for one day.

There were enough used beer bottles to get from Dublin to Lapland and back over five times and enough wine to fill over 432 ice rinks.

There was enough alcohol drunk over Christmas to fill over 24 Olympic size swimming pools and enough used cardboard and paper packaging to fill 647 articulated trucks, which end to end, would stretch to 6.6 miles.

According to recent Deloitte research, the majority of Irish Christmas budgets went on gifts (30 per cent), followed by food (28 per cent), all of which generated used packaging.

Irish consumers received books (48 per cent), cash (38 per cent), clothes (34 per cent), cosmetics (34 per cent) and vouchers (33 per cent) as presents.

Irish consumers spent on average e894 this Christmas, with an average of e484.81 spent on gifts, e258.84 spent on food and e150.76 on socialising.

With such an increase in consumption, both the public and members’ support and participation in packaging recycling is more important than ever.

Bill Collins, Interim CEO, Repak, said:

“Through the support of our members, stakeholders and the general public, Repak will again exceed its recovery and recycling targets.

“Repak’s members have invested over e24 million in supporting the recovery and recycling of used packaging in Ireland this year.

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He added:

“We would ask the public to keep recycling. And to help them dispose of their excess used recyclables visit Recyclemore.ie or download our Recyclemore smartphone app to find local recycling facilities, seasonal opening times and alternative bring sites.

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Real Christmas trees can be recycled at one of the many designated Christmas tree recycling centres around the country.

Check opening hours and locations with your local authority or use the recycling facility search on www.recyclemore.ie