Local fast food takeaways have said they know how "important" it is to help the environment by removing single-use plastic products from their shops. BBC Breakfast visited Bristol this morning (January 14) for John Maguire's report on the Government's announcement that a number of single-use plastic items, including plates and cutlery, will be banned in October.
The Department for the Environment said the ban is being introduced to curb the "devastating" impact these products have. Government officials say around 2.7 billion single-use plastic items are used every year in England, with only 10 per cent of these recycled.
The ban is expected to be enforced through civil sanctions, with repeat offenders facing a criminal conviction. Environment Secretary Therese Coffey said: "We have listened to the public and these new single-use plastics bans will continue our vital work to protect the environment for future generations."
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During his report, Maguire spoke about the impact the ban could have on takeaway firms, many of whom use single-use plastic items to put their food in for customers. However, he spoke to one Bristol chip shop who said they are trying to "do the right thing" already, although it is not always the easiest process.
The report visited Good Frydays in Downend, with Maguire saying the takeaway "prides themselves" on using recyclable packaging. Speaking to the BBC reporter, Good Frydays' Nigel Clift discussed some of the packaging they use, saying as he held up on of the containers used by the chip shop: "To the best of my knowledge, that's a byproduct from the sugar cane industry and it is a compostable product."
However, it was mentioned that for some products such as curry sauce, gravy and mushy peas that the chip shop is still using polystyrene containers and cups as it continues to transfer over to more environmentally friendly items. Mr Clift said: "We are making the move (to different containers).
"We're doing a lot more internet orders now. We are making the move into this (holds up tub), which is a recyclable, reusable plastic tub.
"We like to do the right thing if we can, but we were also aware that a lot of our customers, they're liking to try to do the right thing if they can. And if you can help them do it, they're more comfortable, certainly with this (pointing at recyclable containers), because it's environment, isn't it? And that is important now."
Elsewhere in the report, Maguire visited a firm which is developing food and drink packaging using seaweed to help avoid the use of plastic items. He also went for a walk along the banks of the River Avon, with the Clifton Suspension Bridge in the background, with Steve Hynd from City to Sea.
The segment highlighted the amount of litter, much of which was single-use plastic items, had either been scattered or washed up along the riverside. Mr Hynd said this was still causing a massive issue for the environment.
He said: "It's not like when you're at home and you can choose to put it in your bin or put it in your recycling bin. These type of plastics, at best, will be shoved into a bin on the street, often they're overflowing.
"But at worst they're going to be chucked out of a car window or dropped onto the street. And then the first bit of heavy rain we get, they get washed down into our waterways and they end up here, onto our river banks, causing huge damage to our eco-systems."
Within the ban, the Government said it will not apply to packaging deemed to be "shelf-ready pre-packaged food items". However, the Government added it is looking into further measures targeting commonly littered items like wet wipes and cigarette butts.
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