Easter egg manufacturers have not gone far enough to reduce packaging and improve recyclability, a report has concluded.
The annual survey by Liberal Democrat MP Jo Swinson found the percentage of Easter egg boxes taken up by chocolate was 38 per cent – the same figure as last year.
The study found a number of manufacturers are not using widely recyclable materials for packaging, meaning much of it still ends up in landfill sites.
Luxury eggs from Thorntons, Baileys and Marks and Spencer continued to rely on plastic packaging that is not recyclable in most local authorities, leaving consumers confused as to what should be binned or recycled, according to the report.
It singled out a Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference chocolate egg for wrongly bearing the ‘widely recycled’ symbol.
However the ‘big three’ confectionery companies – Nestlé, Mars and Cadbury – used packaging made from widely recyclable materials such as cardboard for their medium-sized eggs, with Nestlé becoming the first major confectioner to make its full Easter range 100 per cent recyclable.
Ms Swinson said: “Since launching this report in 2007 the main chocolate companies have acted to reduce their packaging and improve recyclability.
“However there are still a number of companies who rely too much on plastic and are sitting on their laurels. A few manufacturers are hiding behind green credentials with packaging that isn’t easily recyclable by the majority of consumers.
“Manufacturers know that their plastic boxes aren’t widely recycled and yet they continue to use them, despite other companies showing how Easter eggs can be packaged with a mind to efficiency and recyclability.
“It’s not impossible and there are now a number of examples of best practice out there to show how it can be done,” Ms Swinson said.
“Companies need to realise they haven’t gone far enough yet and still need to change the fact that so many Easter eggs are drowning in excess packaging.”
Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said: “Nobody wants broken Easter eggs but excessive packaging costs everyone money and creates unnecessary waste, which is bad for the environment.
“Many companies are doing a great job of significantly reducing Easter egg packaging and I applaud Nestlé’s example of making all packaging 100 per cent recyclable. Now I am calling on other Easter egg makers to follow suit.”
A Sainsbury’s spokeswoman said: “We take our responsibility to minimise our impact on the environment very seriously and we have reduced our Easter egg packaging by 57 per cent since 2008.
“This is part of our wider commitment to reduce our own packaging by a half compared to 2005.