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Litter: Fast Food

Volume 486: debated on Thursday 22 January 2009

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with Keep Britain Tidy on fast food outlets causing litter on streets. (248787)

Keep Britain Tidy (also known as ENCAMS) surveys show that fast food related litter is found in approximately a quarter of sites surveyed across England, with incidences increasing year-on-year.

For this reason, the voluntary code of practice for ‘Food on the Go’ was developed by Keep Britain Tidy on behalf of DEFRA, recognising that industry has an important role to play in tackling litter issues. In January 2009, Keep Britain Tidy published results of a survey into the most frequently found brands among fast food litter as part of its latest litter campaign. The results of the survey are available on their website:

www.encams.org.

DEFRA currently grant-aids £5 million per annum to Keep Britain Tidy to help meet the Government's aim of an improved local environment. DEFRA officials meet regularly with colleagues in Keep Britain Tidy, and Lord Hunt, Minister for local environmental quality, is planning to meet with them in the near future. Each year Ministers also agree priorities for the grant spend.