Asda has pledged to remove plastic “wherever it can” from its supermarkets, as well as making any remaining plastic “as recyclable as possible”.

The supermarket has announced a raft of measures ranging from phasing out plastic bags by the end of the year to replacing plastic cups and straws with paper alternatives in its cafes.

In the supermarket’s own brand products, Asda has stated it will reduce the amount of plastic used by “at least 10 per cent” in the coming 12 months.

Tesco and Sainsbury’s have made similar pledges to ban single-use plastic bags, and in January Iceland became the first supermarket to go “plastic-free” for own brand products.

Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Show all 6 1 /6 Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Plastic water bottle for a reusable beverage container Instead of continually buying drinks in plastic bottles you can switch to a reusable beverage container and reduce your single-use of plastics. Selfridges' Bobble 550ml filtered water bottle costs £12.95 and includes a replaceable carbon filter that filters water as you drink, removing chlorine and organic contaminants in the process. You can buy it from selfridges.com Getty/Selfridges Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Coffee cup for a Travel coffee mug It is estimated that the UK throws away around 2.5bn disposable coffee cups a year and almost all are incinerated, exported or sent to landfill because their plastic lining makes them expensive to recycle. The new Latte Levy in the UK means there will now be a 25p charge on every disposable coffee cup bought by consumers. Pret A Manger announced that it will double its discount to 50p in an effort to reduce waste. By swapping to a reusable cup you will be able to help cut the cost of disposable coffee cups. This Keep Cup Brew, cork edition, travel cup in Fika is just one of the many available to purchase. It fits under most commercial coffee machines, is splash-proof and ideal for transporting your coffee whilst on the go. You can buy this particular cup for £19.99 from trouva.com. Getty/Trouva Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Plastic bags for reusable cloth bags An eco-friendly alternative to an ordinary plastic bag is this lightweight shopping bag. It comes with a practical pillowcase pocket and features a black and white ink splatter design. Convenient and durable it also has a matte black spring clip to attach it where you need it. You can buy this from paperchase.co.uk for just £5.00. Getty/Paperchase Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Coffee pods for a pot of coffee Cut your plastic coffee pod usage with a cafetiere. This Barista and Co, 3 Cup Gold Cafetiere, from Habitat offers a simple way to brew and serve in style. Made from borosilicate glass and plated stainless steel with an ergonomically designed handle, the cafetiere is built to last and a pleasure to use; a fine metal filter produces a smooth coffee that retains its natural oils. You can buy it for £30 from habitat.co.uk. Getty/Habitat Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Balloons for eco-friendly decorations Instead of using plastic balloons at your party try swapping them for some eco-friendly bunting. Handmade in Scotland, the bunting comprises thirteen brightly coloured pennants which spell out the words 'Happy Birthday', and uses lettering that has been printed onto 100 per cent recycled card. Included is 11ft of natural jute twine to hang the pennants on, and everything comes packaged in a cello bag. You can buy this bunting from Little Silverleaf on notonthehighstreet.com for £12.50. Getty/notonthehighstreet Ways to reduce your single-use plastic Plastic straw for a reusable bamboo one Swap plastic straws for reusable ones made of bamboo. These straws are handmade in Bali and crafted by local balinese artisans. Made of organic and natural materials they are the best eco-friendly alternative to plastic, steel or glass straws. You can purchase them from Bali Boo on Amazon.co.uk for £13.99. PA/Bali Boo/Amazon

“Where we are able to go faster and harder to remove avoidable plastics from our products, we will,” said Asda chief executive Roger Burnley, stating that “we have an established track record in this area already.”

“Our logic is to remove plastic wherever we can, and where it is required, to make it as recyclable as possible.”

Other changes being implemented include replacing polystyrene pizza bases with cardboard, and changing coloured drinks bottles to clear plastic, a move that could lead to 500 more tonnes of plastic being recycled.

Single-use bags will be gone from stores by the end of 2018 in favour of Asda’s bags for life.

“These aren’t merely long term ambitions – but real, tangible actions we are taking today to reduce our reliance on plastics,” said Mr Burnley.

The pledge has come at a time of heightened awareness of plastic pollution among the UK public.

Latte levy: The plastic problem inside your coffee cup

A survey revealed huge public support for a shift away from plastic, with 80 per cent of people polled by Iceland saying they would endorse a supermarket’s move to go plastic-free.

MPs have called on the Government to take action on plastic water bottles and disposable coffee cups, and January saw a UK ban on the manufacture of plastic microbeads for use in cosmetics.

The Independent has launched its Cut the Cup Waste campaign to tackle the millions of unrecyclable cups that are thrown away every day.

Meanwhile, communities from Penzance to Shetland are taking matters into their own hands and acting to eradicate single-use plastics in their areas.

“The public has become so repulsed by the problems of plastic that they are actively considering a world without plastic,” Professor Richard Thompson, a marine biologist at the University of Plymouth told The Independent.

“That absolutely has to be seen by the industry as a wakeup call for greater producer responsibility.”

Though Asda’s pledge was welcomed by environmental groups, they said it did not go far enough, citing Iceland’s commitment to far greater reductions in plastic used for own-brand products.

“It’s good to see Asda taking action to reduce its plastic footprint and other supermarkets should be doing this too, but a 10 per cent reduction in own brand products over one year doesn’t beat Iceland’s pledge,” said Tisha Brown, oceans campaigner at Greenpeace.