McDonald's is cutting its plastic toys from its Happy Meals in a bid to make them more environmentally friendly.
From 2021 the fast food chain will offer alternative soft or pa per-based toys or a book instead.
It is hoped the shift will save the restaurant's UK business more than 3,000 metric tonnes of plastic - the biggest single reduction to date.
In May, McDonald's will begin trialing its new toys, offering parents and children the option to swap their plastic giveaways for a non-plastic one.
McDonald's is cutting its plastic toys from its Happy Meals (pictured) in a bid to make them more environmentally friendly
It will also run a 'toy amnesty' whereby customers can bring in unwanted plastic toys to one of its 1,350 sites in the UK.
The chain will melt down the plastic to make new toys for its charity in the UK and Ireland.
Gareth Helm, the company's chief marketing officer in the UK, said: 'We care passionately about the environment and are committed to redu cing plastic across our business including within our Happy Meal.
'Families have high expectations of us and we're working as hard as we can to give them the confidence that their Happy Meal is as sustainable as possible.
The chain will also run a 'toy amnesty' whereby customers can bring in unwanted plastic toys to one of its 1,350 sites in the UK and it will melt down the plastic to make new toys for its charity
'Getting that right is a big responsibility, but we believe the changes we're making today have the potential to make a big difference.'
McDonald's first introduced its Happy Meal in the US in 1979 - over 20 years after it was founded in 1955 - and since then the children's meal and toy has become a staple for the restaurant.
In Australia last month, the chain introduced children's books with its Happy Me als. A series of 12, written by Cressida Cowell - author of How To Train Your Dragon - will be released throughout the year with the first two books already available.
The Treetop Twins Wilderness Adventures series is written in cooperation with the Australian Federation of SPELD Associations (AUSPELD) who assist children and adults learning how to read.
In the past, McDonald's has committed to reducing its emissions by 36 per cent by the end of the decade, and to use recycled or renewable materials in all its packaging by 2025
McDonald's, which is in 120 countries and has almost 38,000 global restaurants, hopes this will be its latest step in a master plan to curb its impact on the environment.
In the past, it has committed to reducing its emissions by 36 per cent by the end of the decade, and to use recycled or renewable materials in all its packagi ng by 2025.
It has already removed the lids from its McFlurry ice creams - saving 385 tonnes of plastic - and replaced its salad boxes with ones that can be recycled as paper.
Last year the chain rolled-out paper straws to replace its plastic ones in drinks.
THE MOST VALUABLE MCDONALD'S TOYS EVERLoveAntiques.com previously worked with vintage toy expert Peter Jenkinson to reveal the 15 most valuable McDonald's toys, which are given away free with children's meals...
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