Here's how much plastic every South African uses - and the number is shocking

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South Africans use a lot of plastic – and much of it ends in up rivers and oceans.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) says South Africans use between 30kg and 50kg of plastic per person per year.

That's significantly less than the 136kg and 139kg per person per year in the US and Europe respectively. But much of the plastic ends up in the marine environment.

"Single-use plastics, most common in the food and beverage industry, are typically cheap, produced in bulk and carelessly discarded without being reused or recycled," said the WWF.