Green charity bag launched
Howard Lake | 1 August 2007 | News
Marks and Spencer stores in Northern Ireland are the first in the UK to begin charging their customers 5p for each plastic bag, with all proceeds going to charity. Marks and Spencer regard this scheme as a pilot which they will consider rolling out across the UK.
The province’s 14 M&S stores are introducing the charge as part of a major ‘green’ pilot project. M&S has revealed that they have distributed over 500,000 free ‘Bags for Life’ to customers in Northern Ireland since they announced the bag trial.
The scheme is part of the company’s massive £200m project to encourage customers to be more environmentally friendly. All money raised from sales of bags will be donated to charity, Groundwork Northern Ireland, and used for environmental regeneration projects in disadvantaged areas across Northern Ireland.
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Neil Hyslop, M&S divisional director for NI, said: “Since we announced the trial, customers have been extremely supportive of our plans, which we hope will help us determine how we can change behaviour and break the habit of using too many carrier bags.”
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.