Boots under fire for switching to plastic prescription bags

Francesca Specter
·Yahoo Style UK deputy editor
Updated
Boots is being heavily criticised for its plastic prescription bags. [Photo: Getty]
Boots is being heavily criticised for its plastic prescription bags. [Photo: Getty]

A row has broken out over Boots’ use of plastic bags to supply its prescriptions.

It started with a Twitter user, who goes by the username @redribbon226, calling out the high street pharmacy for dispensing her regular medication in “an oversized plastic bag”.

Boots were quick to respond to the user, explaining the use of plastic is for safety and security purposes – and because it allows an “inspection window” to allow people to see its content.

READ MORE: How to quit plastic: 6 simple switches you can make today

A Twitter user shares a picture of the Boots plastic prescription bags. [Photo: Twitter/@sassymannequin]
A Twitter user shares a picture of the Boots plastic prescription bags. [Photo: Twitter/@sassymannequin]

However, the user was not satisfied with this response, suggesting the initiative was purely “to make more money”.

Others, including Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Tom Watson, have since weighed in on Twitter.

The critics are holding Boots to account for its use of the plastic packaging, calling the choice “pointless” and “retrograde”.

Boots has said it is “committed to reducing single-use plastic” after last year signing up to the UK Plastics Pact – however this backlash would suggest the initiative has not gone far enough for some of its customers.

Another Twitter user weighed into the debate, suggesting the greater issue concerns medication packaging in general – which is often non-recyclable.

Whatever stance you take, plastic pollution has become a growing concern in recent months.

Just last month, McDonalds began replacing its red and yellow striped plastic straws with paper ones – although this was met with a backlash from some of its milkshake-drinking customers.

READ MORE: What is ingesting plastic doing to our insides?

The word “single-use” – as in, single-use plastics – was also voted Collins’ Word of the Year for 2018 – a testament to our growing awareness of the devastating effect plastic use has on our environment.

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