Disposable barbecues have been banned from sale in Balloch and Alexandria Co-op stores in a bid to prevent fires.

The retailer has announced they are withdrawing the packs from sale from all stores in or within one-mile of all UK national parks.

The move is designed to help prevent devastating wildfires and follows a blaze recently caused by a discarded barbecue leading to a fire in a litter bin within the park.

Confirming the move, Adele Balmforth, buying director at Co-op said: “Whilst the majority of consumers use, extinguish, and dispose of instant barbecues safely, and we continue to sell many of them from our stores across the UK, we respect that local decisions to protect the parkland have to be made.

“We have removed instant barbecues from sale to help protect the landscape of the communities in which we serve.“

Three years ago, a seven-year-old boy suffered horrific burns to his hands after scorching barbecue coals were left lying on Luss Beach.

Callum McSwiggan was playing in the sand, skimming stones with his mum and four-year-old brother, when he picked up the hot coals, thinking they were rocks.

He instantly collapsed, screaming in pain and was rushed to hospital, where he was given morphine while the charred skin was cut from his hands.

His mum Carly Lawlor said: “He picked them up and just screamed. Callum never cries. For him to cry I knew it was serious.”

“It was an accident just waiting to happen.”

Following the announcement by the Co-op, the stores in Balloch and Mitchell Way in Alexandria, along with more than 100 other shops in the UK, have removed the equipment from their shelves.

This has been welcomed by national park bosses.

Kenny Auld, head of visitor services at Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority, said: “We welcome the news that the Co-op has stopped selling disposable barbecues in stores close to the national park as they can pose a fire risk.

“If visitors want to cook during their visit to the park, it is much quicker, cleaner and safer to use a camping stove. If you do bring a barbecue, it is important that it is raised off the ground and on a surface that won’t be damaged, like sand or stones.

“It is incredibly important to make sure a barbecue is fully extinguished before disposing of it – we recently had an incident at Milarrochy Bay on East Loch Lomond where a discarded barbecue set fire to a litter bin and the fire service had to be called out.”

Joe McKay is the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s local senior officer for Argyll and Bute, East Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire.

He said: “We are asking visitors to make sure campfires and barbecues are lit in a fire safe pit or container, are always attended, and are fully extinguished before leaving. Smokers are reminded to extinguish cigarettes and dispose of them.

“Just one ember can start a fire which has the potential to burn for days and can be devastating for communities, wildlife and farmland and at the same time places a strain on emergency services.

“Human behaviour can significantly lower the chance of a fire starting, and we are asking visitors to the area to always act safely and responsibly in the outdoors, and always follow the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.”