Richard Kirkman, the UK chief executive of waste management company Veolia, has declared that householders do not need to wash out cans and jars before recycling. Industrial washing machines handle the removal of any residual grime during the recycling process, making pre-rinsing unnecessary and potentially wasteful of household water. This guidance resolves decades of uncertainty among British households about proper recycling practices.

The waste boss advised that items only need to be "relatively clean", with minor residue such as dried jam or yoghurt causing no problems; the sole exception is not disposing of half-full bottles of spoilt milk. The announcement comes amid significant confusion, with eight in ten Britons uncertain about recycling rules and over one billion items annually being incorrectly sent to landfill or incineration. Although nearly nine in ten Britons recycle regularly, research from the environmental charity Wrap indicates most make common errors about which items can be recycled, prompting the Government to simplify collection systems from a proposed seven bins per household to three or four.