The Blister Pack Boys: Why Two Retirees Are Challenging an NHS Waste Blind Spot
In the space of just one year, Piers Nicholson and Anthony Warley have become known across South Wiltshire as the “Blister Pack Boys.”
Back in 2024, Piers (90) and Anthony (70) decided to do something about a problem most of us barely notice: the vast number of pharmaceutical blister packs that are not being properly recycled.
Blister packs are widely used as unit-dose packaging for tablets and capsules. They protect medication, extend shelf life, and offer some tamper resistance. Their introduction was originally supported by a Government Health Committee as a way of reducing the ease with which pills in bottles could be misused in attempts to end life.
But while blister packs serve an important purpose, they also present a serious environmental challenge.
Made from two different types of aluminium bonded together, blister packs cannot be placed in standard household recycling. Separating these materials is technically complex and costly. As a result, an estimated 1.5 million blister packs end up in landfill each year in the UK.
The fundamental issue is economic: the value of the recycled materials is far lower than the cost of recycling them.
There are currently only two specialist recycling companies able to process blister packs, both of which charge for providing and returning collection boxes. Some retailers have attempted to help. Superdrug has run an intermittent collection scheme, while Boots operates a points-based initiative with strict time limits, for their advantage card holders. Neither, however, works well for larger volumes or delivers a sustainable, long-term solution.
Anthony, a retired Respiratory Consultant and General Physician, and Piers, a retired sundial maker and founder of the Fleet Street Heritage Project, share a determination to tackle this conundrum. Their aim is to encourage NHS England and pharmaceutical companies to work towards a new, practical approach—one that addresses this untenable waste problem through innovation, collaboration, and awareness-raising.
In January 2025, supported by a small team of volunteers, Piers and Anthony purchased a recycling container from MYGroup and held their first public blister-pack collection event in Salisbury Market Place, with support from local artisan bakery Hendersons. One year on, and nearly 100,000 blister packs later diverted from landfill, they could feel justifiably proud. Instead, they simply say there is still work to be done.
If you know of any groups, organisations, or community networks that might be interested in hosting a short, informal talk on this subject, please let me know and I will happily pass on your details.
