First ‘plastic-free packaging’ labels to hit shelves of supermarkets
THE world’s first plastic-free Trust Mark to help shoppers know which products have hidden pollutants will be appearing in supermarkets from this month.
Iceland will become the first retailer to adopt the mark, which was developed by environmental campaigners A Plastic Planet, who are also calling for a plastic-free aisle in every supermarket.
Many products, including tinned beans, chewing gum, wet wipes, glass jars and tea bags, contain hidden plastic that makes them difficult to recycle.
Iceland will begin to adopt the Trust Mark on own-label products this month as part of its commitment to eliminate single-use plastic packaging from all its own products by 2023.
Sian Sutherland, A Plastic Planet cofounder, said: “Now we all know the damage our addiction to plastic has caused, we want to do the right thing and buy plastic-free. But it is harder than you think and a clear no-nonsense label is much needed.
“Our Trust Mark cuts through the confusion of symbols and labels and tells you just one thing – this packaging is plastic-free and therefore guilt-free. Finally shoppers can be part of the solution not the problem.”
The first products to feature the Trust Mark include Iceland’s ownbrand eggs, cottage pie and vegetable burgers, which the supermarket says will take more than 600 tons of plastic out of circulation each year. Soft fruit, mushrooms and potatoes are expected to switch to non-plastic this summer.
Each year more than 300 million tons of plastic are produced globally, and 10 per cent will end up in the sea.
It is estimated that there is now a 1:2 ratio of plastic to plankton and, left unchecked, plastic will outweigh fish by 2050. It has been shown that even humans who eat seafood ingest 11,000 pieces of microplastic each year.
Plastic is notoriously difficult to recycle – and only 12 per cent of household waste is reprocessed. The rest is either burnt or goes to landfill.
Richard Walker, the managing director of Iceland, said: “With the grocery retail sector accounting for more than 40per cent of plastic packaging in the UK, it’s high time that Britain’s supermarkets came together to take a lead on this issue.
“I’m proud to lead a supermarket that is working with A Plastic Planet to realise a plastic-free future for food and drink retail.”
The Teapigs brand will also add the mark to packaging.
It recently emerged that many tea bags use polypropylene, a sealing plastic, to keep tea bags from falling apart.
Louise Cheadle, Teapigs co-founder, said: “A lot of tea drinkers have been surprised to learn that many tea bags contain plastic. The Trust Mark will make it easy for consumers to make the right plastic-free choices.”
The Dutch supermarket chain Ekoplaza – the first in the world to install a plastic-free aisle – is also rolling out the Trust Mark across 74 outlets across the Netherlands.