Tea bags
Recycle at home
Good to know
Over 95% of a spent teabag is tea, which is 100% biodegradable. The bags are mostly made from a natural plant fibre, but to prevent them falling apart when you pour boiling water on them, some teabags have a small amount of plastic, which is used to seal the edges of the bags.
Most brands of tea have moved, or are in the process of moving, to a compostable plant-based plastic (check disposal instructions and labels on pack).
Teabags sealed with plant-based plastic need an industrial process to completely breakdown. To help prevent greenhouse gas emissions from teabags rotting in landfill, the best thing to do is place teabags in your food or garden waste collection for industrial composting, if you have one in your area. Check if you have a food or garden waste collection here
Can I compost used tea bags at home?
Effective home composting of teabags e.g., on a heap in your garden or a specially designed composting bin, can only be achieved in climatic conditions that promote the right temperature and balance of microorganisms, which are able to break materials down. So, while you can put tea bags into your home compost, you may find there is a thin 'skeleton' of the bags still visible. These can be sieved out and discarded. Alternatively, you could split the bags before placing the tea in your compost bin and then dispose of the bag separately in your food or garden waste collection.
To check if your tea bag is suitable for home composting look for the OK compost HOME label