www.greensword.com is also campaigning for consumers to find more environmentally friendly alternatives.

The website claims 800,000 tonnes of household waste this Christmas will come from toy packaging alone.

It also claims this year’s predicted best-selling toys show manufacturers are still producing toys in excessive and unnecessary packaging to market the products to children.

Science Professor Ian Swingland said about 40 per cent of toys will be broken or lost within three months of Christmas.

“Because of the difficulty of recycling heavy plastics, most of these will head for the tip. Few toys biologically degrade and even batteries are not recycled, despite the poisons they contain contaminating the ground water we use,” Swingland said.

Advertisement

“The packaging alone accounts for some 20 per cent of the cost and 35 per cent of the total amount of material, toy and packaging. The UK's lack of legislation outlawing the over packaging of such wasteful and damaging ephemera, that are so difficult to dispose of without harming the environment, is a disgrace when Norway recycles nearly 70 per cent of its waste and the UK still only manages about 20 per cent."

Green Sword recommends buying products with minimum and recyclable packaging, purchasing from eco-friendly toy retailers, buy second hand or join a toy library, donate to a charity, which helps preserve endangered species or give a gift voucher.