The Marine Conservation Society is warning that own-brand ‘flushable’ wet wipes, which can be bought from 10 leading High Street retailers and supermarkets, can’t carry the new ‘Fine to Flush’ logo.

The logo denotes an official UK water industry standard identifying which wet wipes are safe to be flushed down the toilet.

In January, a new ‘Fine to Flush’ standard was introduced by Water UK which represents water companies across the country. To meet the standard, wipes must pass strict tests which prove they break down quickly and easily in the sewer system and do not contain any plastic fibres. If wet wipes pass these tests, they can feature the ‘Fine to Flush’ symbol on their packaging. If they don’t, MCS and water companies want to see wipes clearly labelled as ‘Do not flush.’

MCS contacted Aldi, Asda, Boots, Lidl, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Superdrug, Tesco, Waitrose, Wilko, Iceland, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Superdrug, Tesco, Waitrose, Wilko, Iceland, M&S and Co-op Food. All of the companies sell own brand flushable wipes except for Iceland, M&S and Co-op Food.

The ‘flushable’ wipes are marketed under a range of descriptions - from moist toilet tissue, dispersible wipes, to toddler training wipes – however, MCS is warning that the own brands could be contributing to sewer blockages, so-called ‘fatbergs’ and marine pollution. MCS says some wet wipes on sale are increasingly being marketed as ‘flushable’ based on the industry’s own guidelines which it says are insufficient for the UK sewer system.

Laura Foster, MCS Head of Clean Seas commented:

“In our retailer survey, Aldi, Lidl, Sainsbury’s, Superdrug, Tesco and Waitrose – told us that they are either investigating options, have no plans to test their own brand ‘flushable’ wipes against the new guidelines or they haven’t yet decided.”

72% of people in Britain said they used wet wipes in 2016

A YouGov poll conducted on behalf of MCS revealed 72% of people in Britain said they used wet wipes in 2016. Household cleaning wipes were used by 43% of people in Britain, baby and toddler wipes by 36%, facial and skincare wipes by 35%, and moist toilet tissue were used by 24% of Brits.

More than 4 out of 5 British people (83%), questioned in another YouGov survey for MCS, said they supported the removal of the claim of ‘flushable’ from all wet wipes if they do not meet water industry standards for what can be safely flushed.

Laura Foster continued:

“Asda, Boots, Morrisons and Wilko – told us that they have either started to test their wipes against the ‘Fine to Flush’ standard or will have done so by the end of 2019 and will then make changes to their wipes to ensure that they either meet the guidelines, or they will be labelled ‘Do not flush’. However, Morrisons have only committed to test their wipes, not to complying with the standard afterwards.”

“We also asked the retailers if they would continue to sell other brands of ‘flushable’ wipes that do not display the ‘Fine to Flush’ logo.”

“All those that stock them told us that they either have no plans to stop stocking these brands of wipes or they haven’t yet decided. This means there is no guarantee that other brands are plastic free or could be flushed safely in the UK.”

She also pointed out that some wet wipes on sale are increasingly being marketed as ‘flushable’ based on the industry’s own guidelines established by EDANA, the group which represents the vast majority of manufacturers of non-woven wipes across Europe.

According to Foster, EDANA’s guidelines are insufficient for UK sewers because it doesn’t test the wipes for conditions realistically found in UK sewers, and so those wipes may not break down quickly. The problem is being made worse by people flushing wet wipes which were never designed to be flushed, like baby or cosmetic wipes.

MCS is urging people not to buy the products and to consider using more environmentally friendly alternatives to single use wet wipes. It is also calling for any wet wipe without the Fine to Flush logo to be placed in a rubbish bin.

Michael Roberts, CEO of Water UK, said:

“There are approximately 300,000 sewer blockages every year, costing the country £100 million. As a result, thousands of properties suffer sewer flooding, creating misery for homeowners and businesses and leading to high clean-up bills and increased insurance costs. The ‘Fine to Flush’ standard is an important step in the battle against blockages, making it easier for consumers to buy an environmentally-friendly product instead of one which clogs up drains and sewers.”

The MCS survey of main UK retailers on assessing and labelling of ‘flushable’ and ‘non-flushable’ wet wipes was conducted by YouGov, on behalf of the Society.

Laura Foster concluded:

“We will now be piling the pressure on retailers because it is totally unacceptable that they are selling something which, even when disposed of as per the instructions, can potentially contribute to blockages which lead to further ocean pollution.”