Burberry destroys £28.6m of stock to battle counterfeiting

Burberry destroyed unwanted stock worth £28.6m in its last financial year to avoid it falling into hands of forgers or finding its way onto other shelves or websites.

This practice is common in the fashion sector which is now facing calls to scale back production after the Burberry revelation.

It is believed the UK brand burnt coats, bags and perfume, although Burberry insists the procedure comes with an energy benefit to limit environmental impact and it only works with companies that can harness the energy from the process.

High-street retail giant H&M admitted to burning unwanted stock to help power the small Swedish city of Vastera in place of coal.

A Burberry spokesperson said: "Burberry has careful processes in place to minimise the amount of excess stock we produce.

"On the occasions when disposal of products is necessary, we do so in a responsible manner and we continue to seek ways to reduce and revalue our waste.

"This is a core part of our Responsibility strategy to 2022 and we have forged partnerships and committed support to innovative organisations to help reach this goal.”

The Times said clothes worth £12.5bn were thrown out by Britons in 2017 and named several other well-known brands that also burn unwanted stock.