Cheap and cheerful clothes made from cotton fields with a big carbon footprint and a huge thirst for water.

And the clothes aren’t designed to last long. More than 300,000 tonnes of textiles end up in landfill each year.

Take, make and waste.

So the government’s Resources and Waste Strategy – if it comes to pass – will be truly revolutionary.

It wants the UK to move towards a circular economy, where materials are used again and again, and far less ends up as worthless waste.

It will affect everything from cars to carrots (well, their plastic packaging anyway).

Businesses, consumers and recyclers will all have to play their part.

It all begins with manufacturers taking responsibility – and paying – for the disposal of their products and packaging.

Companies that switch to materials that are easier to recycle will pay less than those that insist on using, for example, black plastic trays or laminated pouches that can only be burned or landfilled.

A clear financial incentive for green design.

Under the strategy it’ll also be easier for us to do the right thing.

There’ll be consistent, nationwide standards on what can go in the green bin (or is it blue where you are?).

That should reduce confusion – 470,000 tonnes of ‘recycling’ was rejected last year because it was so contaminated with other materials.

And the bottle deposit scheme that we have been campaigning for as part of Sky Ocean Rescue for the last two years is inching towards implementation.

There is still a consultation to come – and the British Retail Consortium is lobbying for it to only cover smaller on-the-go drinks bottles, which would increase costs and decrease the effectiveness.

The scheme also won’t come into effect until 2023. Around four billion bottles a year are littered, burned or landfilled, but if consumers had a financial incentive they would almost certainly be recycled.

That’s a lot of plastic going to waste as a result of the delay. That’s business and consumers – the last stage is recycling itself.

Companies struggle with an uncertain market for their recycled material. Low demand for their product drives down the price and makes recycling uneconomic.

The Budget contained a tax that could make a big difference – a levy on packaging that doesn’t contain at least 30% recycled material.

That increases demand for recyclate, boosting the price and making it worthwhile for companies to invest in new and better recycling machines.

If the strategy is actually implemented it should eliminate avoidable plastic waste by 2042 and other avoidable waste by 2050.

It gives waste a value, a financial reason to recycle. And where social responsibility isn’t enough on its own to nudge the behaviour of corporates and consumers, money can make the difference.

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