Farmers have frequently highlighted the problem of litter in the countryside

A farmer's Twitter status has gone viral after he suggested that customers' number plates be printed on fast food bags to stop the scourge of litter in the countryside.

Cambridgeshire farmer Tom Martin recommended the proposal in a tweet to McDonald's.

He said the technology is available for fast food giants to start printing car registration numbers on takeaway packaging.

The move would stop the 'constant tide of littering', an issue which many rural groups agree to be a blight on the countryside.







“Come on guys - what a Christmas gift to the countryside (and taxpayer) that would be,” he said on his post, which has gained over 1,200 retweets and 4,000 likes.

The technology is available, and as soon as ?@McDonaldsUK? start printing car registration numbers on takeaway packaging, this constant tide of littering will stop. Come on guys - what a Christmas gift to the countryside (and taxpayer) that would be! pic.twitter.com/66NSohL6DY — Farmer Tom (@Farmer_Tom_UK) November 21, 2019

One person replied: “Genius idea. They should then combine it with scanners on their bins for people who return them for recycling to get points towards free brews!!

Coffee shops should have to do this too.”

Another said: “Use a QR code system to speed it up. Every bag has a QR already printed on it, which is scanned alongside the receipt for every purchase. Makes traceable without extra time to print a specific number/reg plate.”

Farmers and industry bodies have frequently highlighted the problem of litter in the countryside and the effect it has on livestock health, time wasting and costliness.

Cleaning up the countryside and streets currently costs the taxpayer almost £800 million a year, according to the NFU.

A poignant image shared earlier this year perfectly highlights the issue, after a sheep was photographed with a drinks can stuck in its mouth.

Meanwhile, one farmer described how he had to save his calf from choking to death on a 5ft birthday balloon in an incident which happened in June.