Jutexpo's poppy bags made from plastic bottles raise money for British Legion

Shoppers are raising money to aid the work of The Royal British Legion by using environmentally friendly, reusable bags made entirely from recycled plastic bottles by Worcestershire company Jutexpo.

The handy fold away pouch bags, which feature the iconic poppy, are part of a range of shopping bags being sold thanks to a partnership between the charity and Jutexpo, the world’s biggest supplier of reusable, ethically-produced shopping bags.

Each bag is created using the material from three plastic bottles, in a process which turns the plastic into a durable and practical fabric called rPET (recycled polyethylene terephthalate).

The fabric carries the certification of the Global Recycled Standard and the bags are sold for £2.99 through The Royal British Legion’s own Poppy Shop www.poppyshop.org.uk/fold-away-shopper-bag.html

They are part of a range of reusable shopping bags made for The Royal British Legion by Jutexpo, which has its Head Office at Lauriston Business and Technology Park, Pitchill, Salford Priors, Evesham.

Bags made out of juco, a blend of 75 per cent jute and 25 per cent cotton, are now being sold in Sainsbury’s stores across the country, with a minimum of £1 per bag donated by Sainsbury’s.

The Jutexpo jute and juco poppy bag range was launched eight years ago and has so far raised over £1million to aid the work of The Royal British Legion.

The Royal British Legion has been supporting service men and women, veterans and their families since 1921 and provides a range of services to improve and sustain quality of life.

Shalini Patel, Retail Marketing Manager for The Royal British Legion, said: “This is a wonderful way for shoppers to make a donation whilst getting a strong, reusable shopping bag featuring the iconic poppy in return.

“The fact that the rPET bag uses recycled plastic bottles will make it even more appealing, as people who buy them will be contributing to the reduction of plastic in the environment while supporting a worthwhile charity.

“The money goes back into The Legion, which distributes it to help our beneficiaries.

The Legion is there throughout our beneficiaries’ entire lives to help them with funds in a crisis, recovery after injury or illness, moving on after the military and provide support to their families.

Sam Turner, compliance director at Jutexpo, said: “This project takes the plastic from bottles and gives it another useful purpose after its life as a bottle has ended.  We are proud to support The Royal British Legion and are delighted to be offering a range of bags to shoppers which both raises vital funds and helps the environment.”

Jutexpo is the world’s biggest supplier of reusable jute and juco bags, with sales topping 65 million bags since the company was formed in 2002.

The firm, which has more than 80 per cent of the UK market, was formed by father and son Barrie and Sam Turner after they spotted a gap in the market for reusable bags to minimise plastic bag usage.