Despite food waste being recyclable, many people do not sort their food waste from non-recyclables being sent to landfill. As a result, food waste is one of the most common recyclable waste being still sent to landfill.

In 2018, the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT)  worked with Wigan Council, in the UK, to increase food waste recycling in Wigan through a series of actions that applied behavioural insights.