In numbers | Plastic in the sea

300 million - tons of plastic produced globally each year

12 per cent - amount of plastic which is recycled

Five trillion - pieces of microplastic in ocean, with one rubbish truck load added each minute

11,000 - pieces of microplastic ingested by humans each year from seafood

780,000 - microplastics humans will ingest by the end of the century if trends continue

8.5 billion - plastic bags used in English supermarkets annually before 5p charge

6 billion - estimated bags removed from circulation annually at last count, an 80 per cent reduction.

12 minutes - useful lifespan of average plastic bag