Sainsbury’s is scrapping plastic bags for loose fruit, vegetables and bakery items from all of its stores as it ramps up its war on plastic.
The grocer said the move will strip out almost 500 tonnes of plastic bags from its shops.
Sainsbury’s said the shift, which will be made by September, would make it the first UK supermarket to remove plastic bags across its estate.
It will replace them with reusable bags made from recyclable materials, which can be purchased separately by shoppers for fresh produce. Sainsbury’s will introduce paper bags on baked goods.
The move is part of Sainsbury’s wider efforts to remove a further 1,284 tonnes of plastic from its stores this year, in addition to its existing pledge to cut out 1,280 tonnes.
The grocer has previously vowed to make all of its plastic packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.
Sainsbury’s is removing plastic cutlery from its stores and introducing wooden alternatives, while plastic trays, lids and sleeves used to package items such as asparagus, sweetcorn, tomatoes and carrots will also be axed.
It has also promised to replace black plastic trays, plastic film and polystyrene with recyclable alternatives, while plastic trays for eggs will make way for fibre alternatives.
Sainsbury’s chief executive Mike Coupe said: “We are absolutely committed to reducing unnecessary plastic packaging in Sainsbury’s stores.
“Our customers expect us to be leading the way on major issues like this, so I am determined to remove and replace plastic packaging where we can and offer alternatives to plastic where packaging is still required to protect a product.”
Retailers’ efforts to stamp out single-use plastics have been thrust under the spotlight following the Sir David Attenborough’s BBC series Blue Planet II.
Waitrose’s Food and Drink Report 2018/19 revealed that 88% of people who watched the show had changed their habits.
According to the upmarket grocer’s survey of 2,000 shoppers, 60% of people now use refillable water bottles and coffee cups more than they used to.
Waitrose also recorded an 800% surge in the number of questions its staff were asked about plastics.
2 Readers' comments