Demand for the pocket-sized devices has risen dramatically during the summer heatwave, with new consumer research showing that 7.9 million mini-fans are expected to be purchased across the UK in 2026.
Material Focus said that the findings highlight the growing waste challenge posed by ‘FastTech’ – low-cost electrical products such as mini-fans, charging cables, earbuds and novelty gadgets that are often bought for immediate convenience but quickly discarded or forgotten.
Scott Butler, Executive Director of Material Focus, commented: “Mini-fans, one of the poster children of FastTech, first appeared en masse last year and more are surging onto the market during this heatwave, helping us deal with this extreme heat.
“However, as quickly as they are bought, many are thrown away or lie forgotten at the bottom of our drawers of doom.”
More mini-fans sold in the summer heatwave
Interest in mini-fans surged during June’s heatwave, with Google searches for the products more than doubling compared with the previous month.
They have become a common sight on public transport, at outdoor events and in city centres during periods of extreme heat, but Material Focus have warned that many are treated as disposable items despite containing valuable materials such as copper, lithium, and small amounts of gold.
These materials can be recovered through electrical recycling, but are lost when products are sent to landfill or Energy from Waste facilities.
Butler added: “What we should do instead is make sure if it doesn’t work anymore we safely recycle it.
“Search up recycle your electricals to find your nearest recycling point.”
Material Focus said there are around 30,000 electrical recycling drop-off points across the UK, including sites at supermarkets, electrical retailers and local authority household waste recycling centres.
The organisation is urging consumers to take unwanted mini-fans to designated electrical recycling collection points instead of placing them in general waste bins.
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