New plastic-free remembrance poppy set to be released after Royal British Legion collaborates with Wakefield firm

It maintains the iconic poppy design and leaf shape and can be fastened with a pin, inserted into a buttonhole, with stick-on versions also available.

The new poppy is now in full production and is the only poppy being manufactured by the Royal British Legion (RBL) and Poppyscotland.

Gary Ryan, executive director of marketing, fundraising and remembrance at The Royal British Legion, said: “We’re proud to have produced a plastic-free poppy that will enable people to show their support for our Armed Forces community in a more sustainable way.

“Sewtech’s technical expertise and knowledge has culminated in three state-of-the-art machines which are now in full production, making plastic-free poppies ready for the 2023 Poppy Appeal.

"The RBL provides a lifeline for serving personnel, veterans and their families facing hardship, injury and bereavement. We hope our new plastic-free poppy will encourage even more people to support the Poppy Appeal this year and help us continue our work.”

Sewtec noted that it “readily accepted the challenge” of creating a bespoke machine that would produce the UK’s first plastic free poppy.

RBL contacted Sewtec to discuss the possibility of reviewing its existing poppy making machines situated in Aylesford.

Once the test machine was completed, the firm began a research and development phase, before designing the first full machine. This was then built, and the first set of paper poppies were manufactured on-site.

Two more machines were then built – a further one for Royal British Legion and one for the Poppyscotland factory, which required a different design due to differences with the Scottish poppy.

Andy Perks, head of sales at Sewtec, said, “The poppy machines have been an extremely challenging concept as no other machines like these exist in the world. It has been a real privilege to work with such an iconic brand, knowing that together we have manufactured a product that is 100 per cent recyclable and plastic free.

“Everyone involved in the project was driven by the same objective and when you look at the final product you cannot help but be amazed by what we achieved through innovation and teamwork.”

The 100 per cent recyclable poppy will be available for the 2023 Poppy Appeal alongside remaining stocks of the current poppy, which can be returned to Sainsbury’s stores for recycling.