Conventional plastic
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
PET is the clear, light plastic of drinks bottles and fruit punnets, and the same polymer is spun into polyester fabric. It's the UK's most widely recycled plastic, but heat speeds up what moves from it into drinks.
By PlasticFreeHome Research Team · Not yet reviewed by an editor · Updated 21 October 2026
- Also called
- PETE, PET 1, plastic 1, polyester
- Recycling code
- 1 (PET)
- Type
- Conventional plastic
- Found in
- water and soft-drink bottles, fruit punnets and food trays, polyester clothing and bedding, microfibre cloths, some tea bag mesh
- Heat
- Not made for heat or for reuse in hot places. Keep bottles out of hot cars and direct sun.
- Recycling in the UK
- Clear PET bottles and trays are widely recycled in the UK; bottles have the most established recycling route.
What it is
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET, sometimes PETE) is a clear, strong, lightweight plastic. It carries the number 1 in the recycling triangle. Most single-use drinks bottles in the UK are PET, and so are many fruit punnets, food trays and clear lids.
PET is also a polyester. The same polymer, spun into fibre, makes polyester clothes, fleece, duvets and many microfibre cloths.
In drinks bottles
Two things can move from a PET bottle into a drink.
- Antimony. PET is usually made with an antimony catalyst, and traces remain in the plastic. A study of bottled water found antimony well below drinking-water limits when bottles were stored at room temperature, but release rose steeply at the temperatures reached in hot cars and garages. A later study found the drink itself and the type of bottle also make a big difference.
- Particles. A 2024 study using a new imaging method counted around 240,000 plastic particles per litre of bottled water, most of them nanoplastics. PET was one of seven plastics the researchers identified.
The simplest swap is UK tap water in a steel or glass bottle. See bottled water → tap and microplastics in bottled water.
In clothes
Polyester sheds fibres in the wash, and those fibres are a major source of microplastics in rivers and seas. Washing at lower temperatures, on fuller loads and less often all help. See laundry, microfibres and synthetic clothes and synthetic clothes → natural fibres.
How to use it more safely
- Treat single-use PET bottles as single use, and don't leave them in heat or sun.
- Don't refill them with hot drinks.
- Choose natural fibres for clothes worn next to the skin and for bedding, when you next replace them.
Recycling
PET bottles are among the most widely recycled plastic packaging in the UK, and clear PET pots, tubs and trays are recyclable too. Remove the film lid from trays where you can; dark-coloured and coated trays are harder to recycle.
Related guides
Sources
- Westerhoff et al. (2008), Water Research — antimony in PET-bottled water stayed well below limits at room temperature, but rose with heat
- Molecules (2023) — antimony migration from PET bottles into juices and mineral waters depends on the drink, the bottle and storage temperature
- Qian et al. (2024), PNAS — bottled water contained around 240,000 plastic particles per litre, mostly nanoplastics, including PET
- Napper & Thompson (2016), Marine Pollution Bulletin — washing synthetic fabrics, including polyester, releases large numbers of fibres
- WRAP (2022), Polymer choice and recyclability guidance — which plastics are recyclable in the UK, and why PVC and polystyrene are not
Swaps involving PET
Bottled water → tap water in a steel bottle
Bottled water carries hundreds of thousands of plastic particles per litre. UK tap water is cheap and safe.
Swap first · about 3.0 kg of plastic a year
Takeaway coffee cups → reusable steel cup
Paper cups are lined with plastic and topped with a plastic lid, and they hold drinks at 80°C or more.
High priority · about 500 g of plastic a year
Synthetic fleece and activewear → natural fibres (as you replace)
Synthetic clothes shed microfibres in every wash. Replace them with natural fibres as they wear out — don't bin good clothes.
Worth doing · about 1.5 kg of plastic a year