Step away from the Easter Egg

It's that time of year again. The days are getting longer, everyone is planning out their Easter breaks and a consensus to eat as much chocolate as we want puts a spring in our steps after a long winter. It's no wonder that many of us get so lost in this blissful time we rarely step back and examine the Easter eggs that start to fill up supermarket shelves. Or rather, the egg-cessive use of plastic blatantly splattered in front of us.

Easter egg manufacturers may say they need to use plastic and other packaging for a variety of reasons. This list includes protection against egg breakage, keeping the egg fresh, hygiene and so on. However, if we're being completely honest, the reality is that the bigger the packaging, the more it catches our eye and satisfies our consumer need to have the gaudiest item in the store.

Last year, a study highlighted by Lib Dem MP Jo Swinson revealed that a staggering 148 million eggs are sold each year. With each box containing an average of 22g of plastic, the MP said it amounts to more than 3,000 tonnes per year. What's worse is that because of the polymers being used and the film mixed in the material, most of it ends up in landfill.

Even though the alarming figures have encouraged some manufacturers to rethink their Easter egg packaging, with major companies Nestle, Mars and Cadbury now using packaging made from widely recyclable materials, why not try your hand at reducing plastic waste this year? Here are our top tips to have a greener Easter.

Get the taste without the waste

1. Less is more

A simple tip is buying Easter eggs that need less packaging. Go for the smaller chocolate treats instead of the large, fragile eggs that need to be boxed.

2. Buy reusable packaging

Instead of the typical moulded plastic that coddles the chocolate egg, go for eggs that come in nice tins or cardboard that can be used for many Easters to come.

3. Choose foil wrapped eggs

Instead of the shiny, over the top eggs, why not opt for the simple foil wrapped ones? (Creme Egg anyone?)

4. Make your own eggs

This is a bit messier than the rest of our tips but it's lots of fun! You can get a hold of egg-shaped moulds and avoid the excess packaging and waste all together. Not to mention, it's a fun activity to do as a family.

5. Alternative Easter treats

There's no rule book that says we must give Easter eggs as a gift. Why not bake some biscuits or a traditional Simnel cake? It'll be more personal than a store-bought egg and still as tasty.

To keep up to date with our #WiseUpToPlastics campaign, head to our twitter page @RecorraUK.