Poundland has been accused of creating unnecessary plastic waste by selling nothing, complete with heart-shaped packaging, for Valentine’s Day.
Called the 'Gift of Nothing', the product is on sale for £1 and is accompanied by the taglines “exactly what you asked for” and “less is more”.
While some have found the novelty gift funny, environmental groups have labelled it “a symbol of everything that is wrong with our view of the world".
Julian Kirby, lead campaigner on plastics at Friends of the Earth, told the Press Association:
It’s almost a riddle in itself.
Who would actually want this, and who would buy it?
The rest of the world sees the need for only the most essential plastics, with a fast phase-out of all other wasteful plastics, so let’s hope folly like this goes unloved and doesn’t re-appear.
Poundland defended the product as “a bit of fun”, but did not clarify whether it could be recycled. The discount chain said in a statement:
Our customers love it as do loads of others online.
They all know it’s a bit of fun and we understand that’s still allowed in moderation.
Sian Sutherland, co-founder of anti-plastic campaign group A Plastic Planet, said:
How can Poundland possibly think this is OK?
This product is designed to go straight into the bin but will last for 500 years.
It is a symbol of everything that is wrong with our view of the world. We are treating our beautiful planet like it is disposable when it is all we have.
Many shopppers shared pictures of the product with complaints about its use of plastic.
However many others found the product amusing.
Twitter use @lottyburns wrote:
The 2019 award for ‘trying your luck’ goes to @Poundland, for its ‘nothing’ Valentine’s present that still costs a quid!
The 2019 award for 'trying your luck' goes to @Poundland, for its 'nothing' Valentine's present that still costs a quid! 😂 pic.twitter.com/kFKsWmFzRT
