The McDonald’s UK menu is getting a “sustainable shake-up”, with the removal of plastic lids from all McFlurry options.
The plastic lids will be removed from September this year and will reduce plastic waste by 383 metric tonnes annually, the restaurant chain says.
The fast-food giant also announced that single-use plastic will also be removed from McDonald’s salads from next week – all main meal and side salads will be served in 100% renewable and recyclable cardboard containers.
Changing the existing plastic bowl, shaker salad cups and lids will result in 102 metric tons of plastic being removed annually, it says.
These containers are made from ‘carton board’ which contains 50% recycled content and 50% new, which itself comes from certified sustainable sources.
The coating on the containers, designed to keep them rigid, is also 100% renewable.
It says, in total, the new packaging across the McFlurry and salads range will reduce plastic waste by 485 metric tonnes annually.
In 2018 the business announced that it would replace over 8 billion plastic strawsused annually by customers in the UK with paper straws.
The changes are part of the business’ ongoing commitment to move to more sustainable packaging; globally McDonald’s has committed to source all packaging from renewable or recycled sources by 2025.
Beth Hart, Supply Chain Director, McDonald’s UK & Ireland said: “We are committed to listening to our customers and finding solutions with our suppliers that work for them, this is the latest example of that – but by no means the end.
“We continue to look for solutions for our cutlery and lids, for example, but this is great progress.
“For us, sustainability is about more than just packaging. We have to look at the whole journey – by 2030 we’re committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 36%.”