What waste does a pub produce?

Glass is the dominant stream for any pub or bar doing meaningful drinks volume. Wine, beer, spirits, mixers. A busy local can fill a 240L glass bin in a single Saturday night. Add a beer garden in summer or a sports event on the TV and the volume roughly doubles.

Food waste depends on the food offer. A wet-led pub with bar snacks generates a fraction of what a gastropub kitchen produces. Either way, separation is now a legal requirement under Simpler Recycling.

Cardboard arrives in volume from brewery and supplier deliveries. Beer cases, wine cartons, snack box packaging. Mixed recycling covers cans, plastic bottles from mixers and soft drinks, and the various consumables.

General waste is what’s left after everything’s separated. Less than people think once glass, food, cardboard and mixed recycling are pulled out properly.

What’s the typical bin spec for a pub?

Most pubs run something like a 660L or 1100L general waste bin on weekly or twice-weekly collection, a glass collection two or three times a week (often Monday and Friday), a 240L or 660L food waste bin on twice-weekly pulls if there’s a kitchen, a cardboard cage or bin on weekly collection, and mixed recycling weekly.

Busy city centre bars and sports pubs often need glass three times a week, sometimes daily through summer. High-volume venues with kitchens benefit from a baler for cardboard if there’s space.

What specialist streams do pubs deal with?

Glass recycling is sector-defining. Most local authorities and waste contractors have specific glass collection vehicles and routes. Mixing glass into general waste is bad for crews and bad for the load.

Food waste under Simpler Recycling came into force in England on 31 March 2025. Pubs with kitchens are firmly in scope. Cellar waste covers spillage, line cleaning chemicals, and the run-off from beer line maintenance. Line cleaner is a mild hazardous chemical and the waste water from cleaning needs to go down a trade effluent drain, not the street drain.

Cooking oil from a pub kitchen needs a licensed UCO carrier.

What compliance pitfalls catch pubs out?

Duty of Care paperwork is the most common slip. Cellar man drops the empty glass at the bottle bank down the road on a Sunday morning because it’s quicker than waiting for collection. Without a transfer note, that’s not legal disposal.

Late-night licensing affects bin presentation. Many councils restrict when bins can be on the pavement. Simpler Recycling food waste compliance applies to any pub with a kitchen.