Do you remember the cereal packets we used to get as children, with free plastic toys or picture cards inside? Things haven’t changed much these days; these cheap plastic give-aways are everywhere. Have you noticed how many children’s magazines there are and how many of them give away free, tacky plastic toys and gifts?
In July 2019, HuffPost UK began their feature on give-away plastic by big brands, pointing out that:- ‘There are an estimated 19,500,000,000 pieces of single-use plastic inside UK homes.” They quoted Jo Ruxton, Plastic Oceans UK founder, who explained: “Children’s comics are no longer available without a plastic toy to take home ……. now it seems it’s the children, who care for the environment, who are rejecting this policy.”
Skye is a young climate activist, who is indeed rejecting this policy and wants to do something about cheap plastic give-away gifts. She lives in Gwynedd and is just 10 years old. Skye is concerned about the environment and is helping to put things right. Not only does she regularly pick up litter in her village, she has also launched a petition against the ‘cheap plastic rubbish’ being sent to her in her children’s magazine.
Skye wrote to the magazine publisher, asking them to stop sending her these plastic gifts. Apparently, the publishers told her that the toys were recyclable…. ‘in some areas.’ (which is hardly the point!). To her credit, Skye was not put off by this, explaining she would like to see the plastic gifts stopped and that they were ‘pointless’. She is concerned about their impact on the environment and that they would end up as waste or in landfill.
As Skye explained “these toys will be made in China, wrapped in plastic, put on a pallet, wrapped in more plastic, sent across the world, unwrapped, stuck on a magazine and covered in more plastic and then shipped to houses”. If she succeeds, the Welsh Government have said that her actions “could help Wales to become waste free”.
Skye may well succeed. Burger King is giving up on the ‘give away’ free plastic toys for children and MacDonalds looks to be following suit. Fiona Harvey, Guardian environment correspondent says “Plastic is the wonder product of the last century…….it is catnip to small children, to whom it can be used to sell anything from fast food to extravagantly priced magazines”. Friends of the Earth are clear that there needs to be rules to stop this plethora of junk plastic and that if businesses don’t change their ways to protect Earth’s resources then governments should make them.
Young children can see for themselves the environmental impact of litter and plastic waste on their local environment and on the planet. Many are trying to do something about it, for example the campaign group Kids Against Plastic. It is inspiring and encouraging to hear of children like 10 year old Skye who IS trying very hard to do something about it. Let’s hope she does succeed!