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Did you know that your old mobile phone has the power to protect the planet?

In partnership with mobile phone recycling companies, we collect unwanted mobile phones to be recycled or refurbished. For every reusable phone sent in, FFI receives an average of £5. These funds then provide critical support for FFI’s conservation projects

All you have to do is place your unwanted phone in an envelope and address it to:

FREEPOST Fonebak
FFI

It's that simple - and it's free.

In addition to collecting your personal mobile phone, FFI is eager to work with your company or school to recycle phones on a larger scale. Download our fact sheets for companies and schools to learn how to get involved in reducing environmental impact while supporting a great cause.

Our current corporate mobile phone recycling supporters include BP, British Airways, British Gas, Cargill, Lafarge, RBS, and Vodafone. In 2006 alone, FFI raised nearly £34,000 from these companies - and from individuals like you.

Interested in learning more? Want to order free Fauna & Flora International recycling bags to give away at events and promotions? Please contact us at recycle@fauna-flora.org or call (0)1223 571000.

Why recycle?

In the UK alone, over 15 million people replace their phones every year, yet only a small percentage of these phones are recycled. Refurbishing or recycling these phones will remove an estimated 7,500 tonnes of landfill, and will prevent the potentially hazardous materials found in phones from degrading and seeping into the environment.

Reusing old mobile phones also creates social benefits for developing countries. Research shows that the high cost of handsets is the single largest barrier to mobile phone use in developing countries. By sending your old phone to FFI, you help make low cost handsets available to support development and close the digital divide.

Phone facts

• An estimated 1.75 billion mobile phones are in circulation around the world, with 45 million in the UK alone.
• Every hour, 1,712 mobile phones are replaced in the UK.
• An estimated 90 million phones lie unused in the UK.
• The cadmium from one mobile phone battery is enough to pollute 600,000 litres of water, which would fill 1/3 of an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
• If all the mobile users in the UK threw away their old mobile phones when they upgraded, there would be £650,000 worth of silver sent to landfill a year.