Polystyrene should be banned to prevent environmental damage and diseases linked to the toxic chemicals used in its production, campaigners say.
The smooth, brittle material – found in everything from takeaway containers to TV packaging – is one of the most common plastics in the UK.
It isn’t often recycled because of the complexity and cost involved, along with the difficulties associated with collecting the waste polystyrene.
Campaigners argue that polystyrene must be outlawed to stop environmental harm and disease caused by toxic chemicals in its manufacture.
According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, around 1.15 billion plastic drink and food containers made of polystyrene were sold in England during 2018.
Polystyrene has been shown to be slow to biodegrade, and it is linked with certain cancers.
This is made by blasting small plastic pellets with steam to expand them into white balls that are then bound together.
Steve Hynd, of campaign group City to Sea, said: ‘Expanded polystyrene could be easily replaced with less damaging plastic-free and ideally reusable packaging.’
Nina Schrank, senior plastics campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: ‘The hazards to human health posed by polystyrene are deeply concerning.’
From next June, all single-use plastic food containers made from polystyrene will be prohibited in Scotland