McDonald’s could put customers’ number plates on bags to catch litterers

McDonald’s drive-thru customers could have their car number plates printed on food packaging in an effort by the council to deter littering.

The Welsh government has ‘explored’ the possibility with the fast-food chain after Plaid Cymru reported a rise in rubbish following the first lockdown.

Chris Howell, Swansea Council’s head of waste, parks and cleansing, said the idea might work in theory but would have a fair few drawbacks.

Howell told a climate change corporate delivery meeting: ‘The Welsh government has explored with McDonald’s, or their franchises, whether or not they could print number plates of cars collecting takeaways from their drive-throughs with a view that that would discourage people from discarding their [litter].’

Though, he wasn’t sure whether customers would be exactly thrilled by the initiative.

‘If McDonald’s do it, then people will just go to Burger King instead of McDonald’s, because nobody wants to have their private details printed on that packaging,’ he told the committee, according to Nation Cymru.

He added: ‘I think it’s a really good idea but at the minute it’s fraught with some difficulties.’

In 2020, Plaid Cymru launched a petition calling on fast-food companies to print customer numbers plates on drive-thru packaging.

The government said littering was in no way acceptable and that a new prevention plan with businesses and councils is in the works.

But McDonald’s has tried some more interesting ways to put off litterbugs.

In Weymouth, Dorset, a branch abandoned packaging altogether for the day to help combat littering, leading to chaotic scenes of people being handed chips and burgers without any wrapping.

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