Bath firm's pride over eco-friendly Remembrance Day poppy

A design firm has spoken of its pride in creating an environmentally friendly Remembrance Day poppy partially made from used coffee cups.

Design agency Matter, from Bath, has made the poppy plastic-free and it is the first update to the design since 1995.

The Royal British Legion said about 50% would come from discarded coffee cups, with the rest made of renewable fibres.

The all-paper poppy will be released ahead of Remembrance Day this year.

By removing plastic, the firm said they had removed in the region of 80 million plastic parts from being produced and thrown away each year.

"We went through numerous different kinds of iterations to see how we can connect these two bits of paper together," said designer John Macdonald.

"We eventually came up with a solution that could run down a high speed production line."

"We are extremely proud to be part of [the project]," continued Mr MacDonald.

"It has huge symbolism and meaning. It is very important to a lot of people and we have worked hard to make sure we maintain the icon."

Andy Taylor-Whyte, poppy appeal director at the Royal British Legion, said the design was "more planet-friendly".

"We're so proud to unveil our plastic-free poppy, which is completely recyclable, and hope that this will encourage more people than ever to take part in this year's Poppy Appeal and show support to our armed forces community," he said.

Money raised each year is used to support the armed forces community with issues including mobility, homelessness, family breakdowns and mental health.

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