Five Suffolk Burger King restaurants including four in Ipswich will become the first in the UK to trial reusable and returnable packaging.

The new initiative has been created in partnership with global re-use platform, Loop, and will see the famous fast-food chain try out the first ever re-usable burger container.

Burger King will also be offering a reusable cup during the pilot which will run between April 26 and September 5.

The scheme has been launched across all four of its Ipswich restaurants and the Newmarket branch.

The announcement forms part of Burger King UK’s plans to reduce carbon emissions, with a target of 41% reduction in total emissions per restaurant by 2030, and 0% single-use plastic by 2025.

To take part in the scheme, Burger King customers will have the option to pay a £1 deposit for a reusable cup or container instead of using throwaway packaging, helping reduce single-use packaging consumption.

Customers can choose 10 Burger King UK products to be served in the Loop re-usable packaging including a range of sides.

When customers return the reusable cup or container, they can do so by downloading the Loop app, scanning the barcode on either the cup or container and returning it into a Loop bin.

Loop bins will be placed outside selected Burger King UK restaurants where the trials are taking place, as well as in other locations found via the Loop app.

Customers who return their cups or containers will be refunded their deposit, with all returned cups or containers being professionally cleaned using Loop’s state-of-the-art cleaning system, scientifically designed to sanitise each item before reuse and then put back into the cycle.

Nicola Pierce from Burger King UK said: “We’re delighted to unveil a trial range of re-usable and returnable packaging for our restaurants.

"The launch of the new packaging from Burger King UK will include the first ever re-usable and returnable ‘clamshell’ for burgers and sides in the UK.

"We’re excited to see how the trial performs over the next five months and help us reach our goal of eliminating single-use plastic within our restaurants by 2025.”