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John Lewis & Partners
John Lewis said “fill your own” crackers now account for one in three packets sold
Waitrose and John Lewis are to stop selling Christmas crackers containing plastic toys from 2020 as part of plans to cut down on single-use plastic.
Instead crackers will be filled with toys made from recyclable materials, and they will no longer be decorated with plastic glitter.
The company also plans to reduce the amount of glitter in other products.
It is one of a number of retailers pledging to cut the amount of plastic in its Christmas range.
John Lewis is also selling “fill your own” Christmas crackers, which the company said now account for one in three packs sold.
It said it had also reduced the amount of plastic glitter on its own-brand range of Christmas wrapping paper, gift bags, advent calendars and crackers by two-thirds, as well as removing plastic wrapping from the majority of individual cards it sells.
Last December, it announced plans to ban plastic glitter from these own-label products by Christmas 2020.
Standard glitter is made from etched aluminium bonded to polyethylene terephthalate – a form of microplastic that can find its way into the oceans and harm animals.
Explaining the 2020 target, Dan Cooper, partner and head Christmas buyer at John Lewis, said: “One of the challenges I face as a buyer is that we plan 18 months ahead so it takes time for changes to become a reality.”
What are other retailers doing?
Tesco has switched to a plastic-free, biodegradable glitter on its Christmas range of trees, plants and flowers this year, as well as removing glitter from its own-brand wrapping paper, tags and single Christmas cards.
Marks and Spencer has removed glitter from its entire Christmas range this year, as part of a commitment to make all its cards and gift-wrapping products glitter-free by the end of 2020.
Sainsbury’s has ditched all plastic packaging from its Christmas crackers this year.
Asda removed plastic windows and film from more than 1.6m mince pies last Christmas, as part of a drive to reduce plastic from its own-brand packaging.