Keep Britain Tidy gives away ‘Butt Boxes’ to tackle cigarette litter

UK-based independent environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy has created a social campaign featuring an interactive DOOH special build which distributes ‘Butt Boxes’, to help smokers responsibly dispose of their cigarette butts.

Keep Britain Tidy’s research shows that the number one reason smokers give for dropping cigarette butts is that they are unable to find a bin. Building on this research, Keep Britain Tidy is making thousands of ‘Butt Boxes’ available for smokers to reduce cigarette litter.

VCCP London and digital experience agency Bernadette worked together on the campaign, which aims to educate people on the scale of the problem and give those who smoke an opportunity to do the right thing by using a ‘Butt Box’ to store their litter until they find a bin.

The new film, published on social media today, focuses on a special DOOH installation built on New Street in the centre of Birmingham. A smoke detector was used to trigger a special interactive animation to grab the attention of passing smokers and to dispense a ‘Butt Box’.

The animation features Drake, the duck who has starred in recent Keep Britain Tidy campaigns, ‘tapping’ at the screen of the D6 display when smokers approached. Digital experience agency Bernadette created a 3D model of Drake for use in assets across the campaign including this special installation.

This new activity builds on insights showing that many people who smoke do not consider cigarette butts to be litter and is part of an ongoing integrated campaign ‘Cigarette Butts are Rubbish’ from Keep Britain Tidy and VCCP which includes the recent TVC ‘Mexican Standoff’.

Cigarette butts account for 66 per cent of all litter in England and Keep Britain Tidy has made it a priority to tackle this issue. The campaign takes a behavioural science approach to littering, relying on research carried out with smokers by Cowry Consulting and VCCP Stoke and uses humour to engage with audiences.

Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, CEO of Keep Britain Tidy said: “Cigarette butts are the country’s - and the world’s - most widespread litter problem with billions being thrown on the ground or dropped down drains every year.

“As a charity, we are always looking for new and innovative ways to engage the public and encourage them to do the right thing when it comes to litter and that is why we are so excited to see how the public reacts to our latest campaign.

“We know that smokers need a solution for those times when they have finished a cigarette but there is no bin nearby. A portable ashtray is the perfect solution and we want to see it become the norm for everyone who smokes to carry one.”

Frances Leach, creative director at VCCP added: “Cigarette butts are, quite frankly, rubbish. In fact we drop more pesky butts in the streets than any other item. So Keep Britain Tidy are distributing personal ashtrays to get people to box their butts rather than ditching them on the pavement. It’s such a neat solution, we needed to get people using them.

“We’re not here to tell anyone off, as this is just going to alienate our audience, so we felt the best way to tell people about our Butt Box and show it in action was humour. So Drake, our campaign mascot, is back. And this time he’s here to offer people who smoke an easy solution to avoid dropping their cigarette butts and ensure streets are cleaner and there are fewer angry ducks waddling about the place.”

The new film featuring the stunt activation in Birmingham will be shared across Keep Britain Tidy’s social media channels beginning today.