Asda announces that fishing crews will now catch plastic waste along with their daily catch

The store's fishermen will now be equipped with specialist bags so that they can collect harmful plastic waste as well as fish.

More than 500 vessels will be supplied with hard-wearing and durable bags so the crews can help clear the oceans of plastic pollution.

Bottles, plastic carrier bags and marine waste are amongst some of the most commonly found plastics that pollute the waters and are causing huge problems for sea creatures.

Laura Babbs, Asda’s Sustainability Manger said: “At Asda, we’ve worked hard to reduce and remove plastic from across the business but we always looking for ways to further our commitment to protecting the planet and working with our suppliers to tackle the wider issue of plastic pollution is vitally important.

We can’t tackle big climate change issues alone and so it’s important for us to listen to and work in partnership with our suppliers, so we can make a real difference to tackling plastic pollution everyday. This is just a small step in our ongoing sustainability journey, but together with our suppliers, we have the ability to make a big difference.

Helen Bird, Strategic Engagement Manager from WRAP (which leads The UK Plastics Pact) said: “Keeping plastic waste out of the natural environment is central to the aims of The UK Plastics Pact, so we welcome this move from one of our founding members. Collaborative working across supply chains is the only way we can tackle the issue of plastic pollution effectively.”

Since 2018, Asda has removed 8,000 tonnes of plastic and the retailer recently brought forward commitments to make almost a third of plastic packaging from recycled sources by the end of 2020, and reduce plastic by 15% by February 2021.

Asda’s Fishing for Plastic scheme will be rolling out globally with countries including Scotland, Alaska and Norway all participating.