Enjoy egg-cellent waste-free gifts this Easter

15 Mar 2010

With about 80 million chocolate eggs expected to be bought in the UK this Easter, Waste Awareness Wales is encouraging consumers to reduce the amount of packaging waste that these chocolate eggs create.

Rachel Jowitt, Head of Waste Support at Waste Awareness Wales said "While we certainly don’t want to deny chocoholics their sweet treats, we do have to highlight the fact that the vast majority of packaging from Easter eggs will head straight to landfill. 

"We only have only about eight years of landfill space left in Wales, which is why we are asking shoppers in Wales to be mindful of this when buying their Easter eggs.

So this year, why not try and select eggs that are not excessively packaged such as those wrapped only in foil. They still taste as good, but you’ll be doing your bit for the environment. 

"Any packaging waste you do end up with, including card and paper, can be recycled in most areas in Wales. If you’re unsure, it’s best to check online to find your nearest recycling bank on Waste Awareness Wales’s website.

"If you want to be really waste-aware, ditch the shop-bought Easter eggs and try making your own home-made treats such as chocolate nests and giving to your friends and family instead."

For more tips on how to reduce, reuse and recycle, and to find your nearest recycling centre visit the Waste Awareness Wales website on www.wasteawarenesswales.org.uk

Waste Awareness Wales’s tips on how to banish additional packaging this Easter:

1)     Plan an Easter egg hunt. Hiding small foil wrapped chocolate eggs around the house and garden isn’t just fun – it also cuts down on the additional packaging which often comes with larger eggs.

 

2)     Try and purchase eggs or chocolate with the least packaging possible – whether it’s a foil wrapped egg or a simple foil-wrapped bunny, there are plenty of alternatives to an egg wrapped in a combination of foil, plastic and cardboard.

 

3)     If you can’t resist those big boxes though, make sure you reuse the cardboard and plastic – for example the plastic shell can be used as a mould for next year’s homemade Easter eggs or the foil packaging can be used in a colourful collage.

Prove yourself to be a popular neighbour by baking chocolate cornflake nests, or a traditional Easter cake. Don’t forget to compost any shells from eggs used in the cake together with the cardboard egg box!