Reducing packaging

The campaign to reduce plastic packaging has gathered momentum since the BBC’s Blue Planet II two years ago and, whether it’s carrying around a reusable water bottle or buying paper or metal straws, lots of us are doing our bit and more than 50% of consumers have reduced the amount of disposable plastic they use. One trend is the rise of low-waste stores that encourage us to BYOC (‘bring your own container’) and use refill stations to cut out singleuse plastic. Waitrose & Partners successfully trialled its Unpacked refill section at its Oxford Botley Road store and it has expanded to four other branches. The Unpacked aisle features refill stations for dry goods, frozen fruit, beer and wine. Waitrose & Partners has pledged that, by 2023, all own-label packaging will be widely recycled, reusable or home-compostable. It has already introduced the world’s first compostable, fibre-based ready-meal tray and it is removing the plastic wrapping from multi-packed baked beans, tinned tomatoes and sweetcorn, which it says will save 18 tonnes of plastic annually. Clean Kilo in Birmingham brands itself as a zero-waste, plastic-free supermarket with the motto “weigh, fill, reweigh, pay”, and frozen food specialist Field Fare, which supplies 400 farm shops, garden centres, butchers and delis, has a range of 80-odd ‘loose-serve’ items, including fruit, vegetables and patisserie products, which continues to expand year on year.