UK — Material Focus estimates that Britons are expected to purchase nearly 8 million mini fans this year, with almost half likely to become electronic waste within a year due to low quality. The organization calculated that 55% of mini fans purchased last year were discarded.

The campaign group projects that approximately 4.3 million mini fans could be thrown away this year if disposal trends from the previous year persist. Online searches for electrically powered handheld fans during the first six months of this year have already surpassed the total searches recorded for all of 2025.

Google searches for mini fans more than doubled in late June compared to the preceding month. Scott Butler, executive director of Material Focus, discussed the increase in mini fan availability. He said, "Mini fans, one of the poster children of fast-tech, first appeared en masse last year and more are surging on to the market during this heatwave, helping us deal with this extreme heat. But many are, as quickly as they are bought, thrown away or lie forgotten at the bottom of our drawers of doom. Instead, with a bit more thought, we could buy an item that could last a bit longer, work just as well but be better for the environment."

Joybuy reported that sales of all electrical fans rose by more than 2,500% week on week during last month's heatwave. John Lewis observed that sales of its £15 neck fan more than tripled during the same period. Currys reported fan sales increased almost 3,000% over the hottest weekend compared with the previous week.

Electrically powered handheld fans can be purchased for as little as £2. Weather forecasts indicate that temperatures in the UK are expected to exceed 30C for up to 10 consecutive days from the middle of this week, with peak temperatures of 34C.

Richard Hudson, policy and technical manager at the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management, noted the challenges posed by improperly disposed electrical items. He said, "Any electrical items incorrectly disposed of in kerbside recycling or residual waste collections can cause problems for waste handlers. These items get crushed and damaged during the collection rounds, and as they contain high-powered lithium-ion batteries, they can then easily catch fire, causing serious risks to workers, equipment, waste facilities and the wider environment. The mass production of cheap, low-quality electrical items that are neither designed for longevity, or with end-of-life management in mind, are a big user of scarce critical raw materials."