Schools in the Exmouth and Budleigh Salterton area have made a protest video after attempts to go single-use plastic free have been scuppered by packaging sent to them by the Government's fruit and vegetables for schools scheme.

In September 2018, children and staff at St Peter's C of E Primary School in Budleigh Salterton began their mission to eliminate single-use plastics from across the school.

But Jemima Moore, the school's eco-champion, discovered that the largest source of single-use plastic was coming from the government provided fruit and vegetable snack scheme.

The government is challenging schools to become single-use plastic-free by 2022 and education secretary, but Mrs Moore said: "Yet, every day this government-led scheme is sending huge amounts of single-use plastic to schools across the country."

She wrote to both the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) as well as directly to the snack suppliers, but the response to the pupils' letters 'simply gave excuses', she said.

As a result, the school's headteacher, Steve Hitchcock, reached out to other East Devon schools who were also being swamped in single-use plastic with an idea to visually represent the problem, and now created short film in the hope that it might have the impact that letters to the government have failed to.

Other schools who took part in the video include Exeter Road Community Primary School, Exmouth, Beacon C of E Primary School, Exmouth, Lympstone C of E Primary School, and St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Exmouth.

The video shows that the plastic packaging the fruit and veg comes in cannot be recycled, and illustrates that it will end up in the ocean by having it will a swimming pool, before the non-recyclable plastic waste is used to spell out 'No Use'.

Mrs Moore, who is also an Exeter City Councillor, added: "Pupils let them know that, whilst they were very grateful for the fruit and vegetables for schools scheme, solutions to the wasteful packaging were needed. Eco Champions asked that they find alternatives to sending fruit in so much plastic and stopped sending unrecyclable black plastic and plastic nets.

"They also suggested that the snack could be delivered in reusable crates instead of cardboard boxes which are used just once, costing the school over £400 to have recycled each year.

"The government is challenging schools to become single-use plastic-free by 2022 and education secretary. Yet, every day this government-led scheme is sending huge amounts of single-use plastic to schools across the country.

"Instead of leading the way on turning the tide on single-use plastic waste and finding solutions, the response to the pupils' letters simply gave excuses.

"St Peter's mission to become single-use plastic-free is going well with the school being awarded Surfers Against Sewage Plastic Free School status. The stream of fruit snack waste continues, however, and a year and a half on there is no sign of action being taken by the government to reduce it.

"Schools collected fruit snack plastic waste to create a short film in the hope that it might have the impact that letters to the government have failed to. The film will be sent to DEFRA and to the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme. It is hoped that it will be shared widely and raise awareness of the government's inaction where it should be leading the way."