M&S to ditch plastic cutlery in favour of wooden versions
The retailer has pledged to roll out the wooden cutlery in all its stores from September
MARKS & SPENCER is introducing wooden cutlery across all its stores in a bid to cut down on single-use plastic.
From September, the retailer will be getting rid of plastic cutlery and replacing it with wooden versions.
According to M&S, this will replace 75 million pieces of plastic cutlery that it hands out to customers each year.
It will still sell plastic cutlery designed for picnics and BBQs, but has said it will introduce sustainable bamboo alternatives from early next year.
Mike Barry, sustainable business director at M&S, said: “We’re passionate about cutting out the unnecessary use of plastic and helping our customers reuse and recycle more.
“Replacing the 75 million pieces of plastic cutlery we give out every year in our stores with FSC [Forest Stewardship Council] certified wooden alternatives is just one of the steps we’re taking to remove single-use plastics from our business.”
What's the problem with plastic?
WHILE all plastics are technically recyclable, some plastics are much more difficult to.
This means they cannot be deposited at kerbside or supermarket recycling banks.
For example, easy peeler nets – found on lots of supermarket fruit – are not only non-recyclable but can cause recycling machines to break down if they get caught up in machinery.
Meanwhile, some plastic products are also missed by recycling banks – pure carbon-black plastic, for example, is not picked up by infrared sorting machines and rejected.
High-street coffee chain Pret a Manger also trialled wooden cutlery in its shops – but this didn’t go down too well with their customers.
As an alternative, it announced it would introduce compostable cutlery in all its shops from next year.
Other retailers have also taken steps to reduce plastic and waste in their stores.
For example Morrisons announced it would be ditching the plastic from its cucumbers, to prevent 16 million plastic sleeves being used each year.
Iceland also became one of the first supermarkets to sell plastic-free chewing gum, which is completely biodegradable.
Bargain supermarket Lidl was named the worst supermarket for recyclable packaging by Which?, with Morrisons taking the top spot.
The consumer group claimed that up to a third of items in supermarkets are in packaging that can’t be recycled.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Money team? Email us at money@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 78 24516. Don’t forget to join the for the latest bargains and money-saving advice.
Find Marks & Spencer discount and offer codes with The Sun Vouchers