Physical cash not only influences how much we spend but also fosters a profound sense of psychological ownership that digital payments cannot replicate, according to research from the University of Surrey. 

Lancaster University researchers investigating consumer attitudes and behaviours around plastic food packaging have found UK households are ‘wishcycling’ - putting packaging in recycling bins and hoping for the best, rather than knowing it’s recyclable – due to confusing product labels and differing recycling facilities around the country.

Academics working on Lancaster University’s Plastic Packaging in People’s Lives (PPiPL) project have been working hand-in-hand with supermarkets, businesses, charities and waste management companies for the last 3.5 years to explore the ins and outs of how the UK thinks and acts when it comes to plastic food packaging. They say ‘wishcycling’ is a problem that everyone - government, food producers, waste management and residents – has to solve.