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Facts about sanitary waste

Sanitary Waste Facts

Sanitary waste is an unavoidable byproduct of using feminine hygiene products, incontinence pads, nappies, and other personal hygiene items. Workplaces must legally have bins for sanitary waste in female and unisex bathrooms while there’s also all the sanitary waste produced, stored, and disposed of at home.

In the UK, more than 4.3 billion disposable menstrual products are used and disposed of every year. This includes tampons, pads, and applicators. Then there’s all the other sanitary waste generated by people of all ages such as nappies, incontinence pads, and other hygiene products.

Many of these items aren’t recyclable due to their infectious and offensive nature. It means lots go to landfill or are incinerated at the end of their life. These methods both have negative environmental effects. Discover how much sanitary waste we produce and its environmental impact with these facts and statistics.

Sanitary waste statistics

Millions of sanitary products are used and thrown away every day worldwide. Bins in business bathrooms, washrooms, and public toilets collect feminine hygiene products, nappies, and other types of offensive waste. Most of these should be emptied daily and the volume of waste can soon add up.

Get an idea of how much is created with these sanitary waste statistics:

  • The average woman uses 11,000 sanitary products during her lifetime
  • An estimated 200,000 tonnes of sanitary products are disposed of every year around the world
  • Sanitary products are made from about 90% plastic, and each one contains a similar amount of plastic as four carrier bags
  • This means it can take a thousand years for many menstrual products to break down in landfill
  • Every single gram of sanitary waste can contain up to 100 billion bacteria
  • Up to two billion menstrual items are flushed down toilets in the UK every year
  • And more than 18,000 menstrual products wash up on beaches annually
  • The British Marine Conservation Society recorded 20 sanitary items per 100 metres of shoreline
  • Sewage-related waste makes up 5% of beach rubbish, which includes sanitary products
  • One million sea life creatures die each year due to the plastic and chemicals contained in menstrual products – including seabirds, fish, turtles, and mammals

Incontinence and nappy waste statistics

Billions of incontinence pads and nappies are disposed of every year around the world. The average baby gets through between 4,000 and 6,000 nappies in their early years and about 95% of these are disposable nappies. Many of these are incinerated while plenty also end up in landfill.

Ageing populations mean incontinence is growing around the world, which creates more related waste products. These statistics about incontinence and nappy waste highlight the scale of the issue:

  • Around three billion disposable nappies are thrown away in the UK every year
  • Disposable nappies make up between 2 and 3% of all household waste
  • Approximately 400,000 tonnes of nappy waste are created in the UK annually according to the Environment Agency
  • About 350,000 tonnes of used disposable nappies could be going to UK landfills
  • Almost 250 million barrels of crude oil are used to create all the nappies produced worldwide each year
  • For OECD countries, municipal waste contains an average of:
    • 7% of infant incontinence products
    • 8% of adult incontinence products
  • It’s estimated that adult incontinence waste will be four to 10 times greater than baby nappy waste by 2030
  • Between three and six million people in the UK experience urinary incontinence
nappy lying on a bush.

Get rid of sanitary waste responsibly

All businesses in the UK have a legal obligation to have bins for sanitary waste in their women’s and unisex bathrooms. We provide free bins for sanitary waste to help your organisation save money, comply with the regulations, and offer comfort and dignity for your employees, customers, and visitors.

There are no delivery or hire costs – you only pay for collection. A range of sizes are available with daily, weekly, or fortnightly collections. Licensed waste carriers can remove your sanitary waste on a schedule that suits you. They transport it to an appropriate facility for responsible disposal.

Get a free no-obligation quote for sanitary waste collection in the UK today. One of our friendly and expert team can assess your needs and provide a tailored price – call 0800 211 8390 or contact us online.

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Published 18th February 2025 by Graham Matthews.