While public policies have focused on waste reduction for several years, the trend is more nuanced. In France, residents still produce the same amount of waste, but they are sorting it more, according to figures released this Wednesday, June 4, 2025, by INSEE. In ten years, selective sorting has increased by 21%, although the total volume of waste has increased slightly.
An increase in sorting, without an overall reduction
In 2021, each French person generated an average of 615 kg of household and similar waste, representing a 4% increase since 2011. However, at the same time, conventional household waste, known as residual waste, declined by 14%, in favor of better sorted waste: packaging, paper, glass, and biowaste. The latter now represents around 20% of collected volumes, while 40% of waste still ends up in gray bins. Biowaste, bulky items, and construction rubble, for their part, complete the picture. Sorting has become mandatory in France, both for paper and packaging since 2023, and for food and green waste since 2024. However, the objective of reducing household waste by 10% by 2020, enshrined in the Energy Transition Act, has not been met.
Between consumption, territories and social inequalities
While sorted waste is increasingly being recycled—recycling, composting, methanization, or incineration with energy recovery—the rejection rate at sorting centers still reaches 30%. In other words, nearly a third of poorly sorted waste cannot be recycled. Territorial differences remain marked: tourist areas, particularly seaside areas, have waste quantities well above average. Conversely, municipalities that have implemented incentive pricing—in the Grand Est, Pays de la Loire, or Bourgogne-Franche-Comté regions—record lower collections. However, it is in the Landes, Côtes-d'Armor, and Finistère regions that the volumes collected per capita are the highest. Finally, standards of living and consumption patterns weigh heavily: wealthier households generate more waste, often linked to over-packaged or disposable products. Conversely, secondhand or bulk purchasing practices, more widespread among other profiles, tend to limit production. The residential environment also matters: houses, particularly because of green waste, produce much more waste than apartments.
