Recyclable meat trays on the way

Countdown is rolling out recyclable meat trays from today, starting with fresh chicken trays in North Island stores.

All black polystyrene foam trays will be replaced with clear recyclable trays over the next few months.

Customers just rinse and place it in their recycling bins for collection.

The trays are made out of polyester that has been recycled from clear plastic drinking bottles.

Countdown spokesman James Walker said the business expected to save at least 500 tonnes of foam trays from heading to landfills every year.

‘‘Today’s customer wants to know that as a business we are considering the whole life-cycle of a product, including its packaging.

‘‘The new meat trays are better from an environmental point of view, easy for customers to recycle, but importantly they’re also stronger than foam to help prevent leakage and contamination, and transparent so you can now see all sides of the product you’re buying,’’

Foodstuffs, the owner of Pak ‘n Save and New World, started trialling recyclable food trays last year.

Around the same time Countdown introduced recyclable plastic containers for some tomatoes, summer fruit and kiwifruit products.

Countdown released its second corporate responsibility on Thursday, detailing its progress on community and environmental initiatives during the year to June 2016.

Some of those initiatives included donating more than $6 million in kind, cash and customer donations to community initiatives and giving away 50,000 pieces of fruit every week through the Free Fruit for Kids initiative.

It also announced as part of its report that its Food Rescue programme partners could apply for up to $100,000 to go towards the food rescue sector.

All 183 Countdown stores have a food rescue partnership and the new fund was another way the company sought to support food rescue organisations.