M&S throws itself into the Big Beach Clean-Up

Marks & Spencer (M&S) has launched the Beach Clean Frisbee, a toy made from recycled plastic, including plastic collected by M&S customers and employees at last year’s Big Beach Clean-Up volunteer event.

It launches in time for this year’s Big Beach Clean-Up (which kicks off today and runs until the 30th April) and is on sale now at M&S.com and in six costal M&S stores – Belfast (Abbey Centre), Bexhill, Lytham St Annes, Silverlink Retail Park, Weston Super Mare and Edinburgh Kinnaird.

Costing £2.50, 50p from each sale goes directly to the Marine Conservation Society (MCS).

Mike Barry, Director of Plan A (M&S’ eco and ethical programme) at M&S, commented: “We’ve managed to transform waste, taking it off beaches where it threatens marine life, into a brand new product that is fun for our customers and raises money for MCS’ on-going work to protect our seas. That’s Plan A in action, a volunteer event that engages customers, saves precious raw materials and gives back to charity - all with a business case behind it.”

Last April thousands of M&S customers and employees helped clean over 300km of coastline. To trial whether or not M&S could collect and make a product from the beach litter, the plastic from six of the beaches was segregated, cleaned and reprocessed into production ready recycled plastic.

Two UK firms supported the project. Axion Polymers, a recycling specialist based in Salford, transformed the litter into product grade recycled plastic and Make a Material Difference, based in Leicester, created and manufactured the product.