Shoppers cheer ‘nude food’ as plastic war turns to packaging
A New World ‘‘food in the nude’’ initiative can’t come soon enough for some shoppers who have given the supermarket a dressing down for over-the-top plastic use.
Foodstuffs spokeswoman Antoinette Laird said as New World upgraded or built new stores it would be rolling out ‘‘Project Naked’’ in produce departments.
The initiative used a ‘‘misting system’’ to keep fruit and veg fresh and in good condition without the need for plastic, she said.
‘‘The plastic-free produce is much appreciated by customers – and is also resulting in reduced wastage,’’ Laird said.
Six stores had adopted the initiative, with more conversions planned, she said.
New World Bishopdale in Christchurch was one of the first to adopt ‘‘Project Naked’’, or as owner Nigel Bond called it ‘‘food in the nude’’.
Bond told SupermarketNews the customer feedback had been the most positive he had received in his 30 years in the industry.
‘‘Plastic is a useful product when it comes to protecting and labelling our food but times have changed and we are looking for ways of reducing its presence in our stores,’’ Bond said.
But shoppers elsewhere in the country are unhappy with the status quo. New World customer Claire Duffield said she was disappointed to see an aubergine wrapped in plastic. ‘‘No point going plastic bag free if you’re needlessly wrapping veg in plastic.’’
Vivien Smith was shocked at how much fruit New World Thorndon was selling in plastic bags.
Meanwhile, Wayne Branfield was frustrated to see beans packaged in a plastic ziplock bag, within a plastic container.
Foodstuffs was reviewing all packaging in the produce department to ensure it was 100 per cent recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025, Laird said.
It was also trialling bring-yourown containers.
Both Foodstuffs and Countdown have committed to removing all single use plastic bags from checkouts by the end of the year.
The Government has also promised to ban single-use plastic shopping bags over the next year.
Countdown is also being dragged over the coals by shoppers for its unnecessary use of plastic, particularly in the produce, deli and bakery sections, as pointed out by Christian Goeffic in a complaint to the chain’s Facebook page.
A Countdown shopper criticised Countdown for not implementing a blanket ban on plastic bags fast enough. He said he was also frustrated that Countdown used to have brown bags available for organic produce but these appeared to have been discontinued.
Countdown’s general manager of corporate affairs and sustainability, Kiri Hannifin, said the supermarket chain was making progress towards phasing out single-use plastic carrier bags in all its stores by the end of the year.