A HAVERFORDWEST-born shop owner living in Aberporth has said Pembrokeshire could adopt the measures which have made the Ceredigion village the first plastic-free community in Wales.

Mike Allen who runs the London House Stores, was born and raised in Haverfordwest, and has contributed to Aberporth’s efforts to rid itself of plastic waste by encouraging his customers to use glass milk bottles.

“These days I call Aberporth home, but obviously I still love Pembrokeshire and would like to see that wonderful natural beauty of its beaches retained,” he said.

“If Haverfordwest and shops there could reduce the plastic they use by just one less item at a time then that will make a difference.”

Mr Allen says he remembers going fishing in the Western Cleddau near the churnworks as a boy, and though the waterway was never clogged up with plastic, there was always some which had fallen in the river.

“Pembrokeshire has wonderful beaches, so if we can expand this project from one beach to another it all helps the entire coast,” he said.

Aberporth launched its project to become the first plastic-free village in Wales at the end of last year.

The Ship Inn, a local pub, decided to ditch plastic straws for a more environmentally friendly paper alternative, and café Cwtch Glanmordy started using wooden cutlery.

Mr Allen’s London House Stores has had a growing number of requests from customers for re-usable glass milk bottles.

Since Aberporth’s plans made national news, his milk supplier Nigel’s Dairy Products in Carmarthenshire has reported similar requests across West Wales including from national chains like Spar and Premier Stores.

“From my point of view, I grew up on milk bottles,” said Mr Allen, comparing their comeback to vinyl records and other nostalgic call-backs. “Retro is cool.”

An estimated 8million metric tons of plastic end up in the ocean each year according to Plastic Oceans.