Sony have released two new phones that are made from recycled plastic. The phone are made from old CD cases and water bottles and have been launched as an eco friendly option for customers. The GreenHeart C901 and Naite both feature a camera, video streaming, bluetooth and WAP and work as a conventional phone would. The only difference is that the casing is made from 50 per cent recycled plastic. Both phones also include a low power charger and an in phone e-manual which reduces paper usage by 90 per cent. They also include an application that allows you to work out how much greenhouse gas emissions you can save by choosing to walk somewhere rather than using your car.

Pret a Manger has taken the decision to switch to a sustainable type of tuna after the founder watched a documentary about intensive fishing methods. They will start using skipjack tuna later this year which is more common than the yellowfin and bluefin tuna that they currently use. As well as being more common skipjack tuna is caught using smaller fishing boats using a pole and line approach rather than an intensive fishing method which often leads to other sea creatures being caught in the nets. Although the pole and line technique is more labour intensive and therefore most expensive Pret have promised that the increased cost will not be passed onto the customer. Waitrose and Marks & Spencer have also stopped selling bluefin tuna, swordfish and skate and Tesco does not sell bluefin tuna.

If like many other people you are thinking of getting an allotment to grow your own vegetables, it appears you might be in for a long wait. According to this article in some areas the waiting lists for an allotment are so long that you might have to wait up to 40 years before you get one. In Camden for example there are 883 people waiting for an allotment and in Islington, Burnley, Fylde, Wirrel and Kingston upon Hull waiting list are all longer than 10 years. Although every council has to provide 20 allotments per every 1,000 residents it seems demand is simply to high. Whether its the effects of recession or simply a renewed interest is not clear but it appears growing your own is the thing to do.

Asda is selling a school uniform priced at just £4.75. The uniform includes a cotton polo shirt or easy iron shirt, a cotton sweatshirt and Teflon coated trousers. It is available for all ages from three up to sixteen. Asda have said that the same uniform would cost around £15.25 at Tesco and £21.50 and Marks and Spencer so it seems this is a really good deal.

Royal Mail has launched a tamper proof stamp which should stop people pealing off old stamps and reusing them. The problem whilst it might seem minor costs Royal Mail tens of thousands of pounds every year. Although stamps are franked when they go through the sorting office, the markings on them are not always noticeable and often stamps with little markings on them are peeled off and used again. The new stamps, however, should make it impossible to reuse them. They have two oblong strips on either side of the stamp so that when the stamp is peeled off the strips are left behind. This leaves a useless stamp with two holes in it which should now be unusable.

This article claims that some chocolate bars have shrunk whilst the prices remain the same. Apparently the size of Mars and Snickers bars have shrunk by more than 7 per cent as the company tries to reduce costs. The chocolate bars which previously weighed 62.5g now weigh just 58g. The change happened in the second half of last year and the smaller version are now on sale in the shops. The price of the smaller bar remains the same at 37p for a Mars bar and 41p for a Snickers, so it appears customers are getting a little less for their money. Mars at first claimed the move was to help tackle the nation’s obesity problem but later admitted that it was as a result of rising costs.

According to this article Sky has struck a deal with Microsoft that will see their content offered through the Xbox. Under the deal live football, TV and films will be available through the Xbox. It is likely to be available in the autumn although no details have been released on how much it will cost. There is likely to be some deals available for people who already subscribe to Sky offering them content at a reduced cost but once again no specifics have yet been released.

It looks as thought it might be all over for Setanta as an emergency meeting has taken place to try and secure a rescue package. The sports broadcaster could face going into administration within days unless backers provide more funds. The company owes the English Premier League a total of £30 million, money that it does not appear to have. It has also failed to pay the Scottish Premier League £3 million which it owes them in television rights money. It is estimated that Sentanta is currently losing up to £100 million a year.