• Out with the old: 18% of Brits confessed to throwing away their old and unused electronics instead of recycling

• Leading the nation: 79% of over 55’s recycle every single day, compared to the national average of 59%

• Not Yet Widely Recycled: 29% of Brits admitted that the biggest barrier to recycling is confusion around what can and cannot be recycled

Huawei, the global leading technology company, has today released research findings that reveal up to 55% of Brits are unaware that their smartphone devices can be recycled, with 18% admitting they throw away old and unused electronics. 

Huawei commissioned the research to discover what people really think about sustainability following the launch of its greenest phone yet, the Huawei Mate40 Pro, which is packaged with 90% less paper documentation and 28% less plastic. Last year alone, Huawei recycled 1,468 tons of waste electronics, reusing 86% of devices returned for recycling, and this year is on track to recycle more than 3,000 tons.

In terms of recycling behaviours, over 55’s are overwhelmingly more environmentally conscious, with 79% percent of the age group admitting to recycling every day, compared to the national average of 59%.  Yet the recycling process can cause confusion for some, with 29% of Brits wrongly believing everyday items such as clingfilm (17%), greasy pizza boxes (55%) and crisp packets (27%) are widely recyclable.

When it comes to peoples biggest sustainability influences, catastrophic events such as flooding and the Australian bush fires this year, drove mass awareness of the need to protect the planet, with one in three (30%) wanting to live more sustainably as a result.

Two thirds of Brits (61%) are happy to see paper documentation removed from smartphone packaging, to help reduce their paper consumption. The new industry-leading Huawei Mate40 Pro digital warranty card allows users to easily access their documents with a scannable QR code on the device, or simply by downloading it from Huawei’s website. In addition, the QuickStart Guide has also been reduced from 340 pages to just 44, and whilst the law currently prevents the removal of the entire paper guide, Huawei is working on this for the future.

Commitment to Sustainability

Moving one step closer towards its mission to remove all plastics from its packaging, Huawei has further enhanced the HUAWEI Mate40 Pro’s green credentials; through the use of 100% decomposable soy-bean ink in packaging, in place of petroleum-based ink, which can reduce the production of carcinogens and VOCs, which are a major source of environmental pollutants.

Walter Ji, President of Huawei Technologies Consumer Business said: “At Huawei, we understand that bold steps must be taken by our industry to tackle the increasingly important environmental issues we face every day. The launch of our greenest smartphone yet, the HUAWEI Mate40 Pro delivers significant reductions in plastic and paper packaging and are just some of the small steps on our journey to ensure a greener and brighter future.”

Through a series of green initiatives that have been implemented since 2013, Huawei has already taken significant steps to help create a greener future, including reducing emissions, investing in renewable materials, supporting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and recycling and reusing waste to help contribute to a circular economy.

Using bioplastics extensively since 2013, Huawei is also helping to reduce pollution and the negative environmental impact of manufacturing petroleum-based plastics. Over 30% of the bioplastics used come from environmentally friendly castor oil, which reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 62.6% and since 2018, Huawei has reduced emissions by 612 tons.

When it comes to energy efficiency, between 2015 – 2019, this increased by a staggering 50% across all Huawei products, and thanks to the use of solar power, Huawei has reduced carbon emissions by 89,000 tons.

Huawei also works hard to repair and re-home its products - 3,030 repair centres worldwide offer convenient, easily accessible repair services, and since 2015, over 500,000 used phones have found new homes through Huawei’s trade in service – all helping to contribute to a circular economy.

To find out more about Huawei’s latest sustainability pledge and its greenest smartphone yet, please visit: https://consumer.huawei.com/en/phones/mate40/