Supermarkets are being urged to create a plastic-free aisle in every store to prevent tons of waste packaging ending up in the world’s oceans.

Around 300 million tons of plastic are produced globally each year, yet just 12 per cent is recyclable, and much of it is washed into the seas where it is toxic to wildlife.

Environmental activist organisation A Plastic Planet will lobby Britain’s major supermarkets in the coming weeks to urge them to offer food packaged only in biodegradable materials.