Marks & Spencer is to start charging for plastic carrier bags in its food stores, and proceeds will go to charity.
A 5p charge will be come into force at its 600 UK food stores.
The move could cut customers' use of throwaway bags by more than 70 per cent, M&S said.
The retailer has already run successful trials of its 5p scheme in Northern Ireland and the south-west of England, where there was a huge fall in the number of bags issued.
Customers will be offered free “bags for life”, and M&S expects to hand out some 20 million in April, in preparation for the 5p charge beginning in May.
Proceeds from the scheme to fund Groundwork, an environmental charity that provides parks, gardens and play areas.
M&S chief executive Sir Stuart Rose said: “We want to make it easy for our customers to help the environment and our trials have shown us they want to take action.
“Just imagine if M&S customers across the UK cut the number of food bags they use by 70 per cent - that's over 280million bags.”
Tony Hawkhead, Groundwork chief executive, added: “Not only will this reduce the amount of food carrier bags sent to landfill sites but it will also help improve the quality of life in towns and cities across the country.
“We all want our neighbourhoods to be cleaner and greener and our experience shows that when a major household name takes the initiative, it can encourage millions of people to change their behaviour.”
Some 13 billion single-use carrier bags are handed out by UK retailers every year, but fewer than 10 in 1,000 are recycled.
No comments yet