Sainsbury’s will also introduce a trial scheme for customers to ‘pre-cycle’ by providing an area for customers to remove unwanted primary and secondary packaging in store and leave it for recycling. This means that food remains protected through the supply chain, but offers the customer the option to recycle before they take the item home.
In addition, from today, Sainsbury’s will remove plastic packaging from sweetheart and savoy cabbages, cutting a further 100 tonnes of plastic packaging over the next year, as part of a drive to significantly reduce plastic packaging.
Sainsbury’s has previously implemented measures that are already leading to a reduction of 8,101 tonnes of non-recyclable plastic and use of “virgin plastic” every year. Over the next twelve months, Sainsbury’s will remove a further 1280 tonnes of plastic from products and ensure all plastic packaging is reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.
CEO Mike Coupe said: “We are serious about reducing plastic. For many years, Sainsbury’s has prioritised sustainability and sought innovative solutions to reduce plastic packaging and increase recycling. Today’s announcements show what we have already achieved and demonstrate our firm commitments for the future to make significant reductions in plastic use.”