Return of the paper bag

THE brown paper bag is making a return to supermarkets, as Morrisons today ditches plastic for its fruit and veg.

Others are expected to follow the latest in a series of changes by the grocery chain to ban single-use plastics.

Last month Morrisons urged meat and fish shoppers to bring their own Tupperware along for storage. Now it says customers who bring containers will get extra loyalty points worth 10p.

The new bags, made from recycled paper, will have a see-through strip so customers and staff can see inside. The supermarket says they will replace 150 million plastic bags used every year. Morrisons will continue to sell multi-pack fruit and veg in plastic bags.

The move is in response to growing concern about plastic pollution, highlighted in documentaries such as the BBC’S Blue Planet II.

Meanwhile, Tesco is removing bestbefore dates from most fruit and veg packs, leaving shoppers to use common sense to decide when they are not fit to eat. It will apply to apples, potatoes, tomatoes, lemons and onions and comes after campaigners complained of the “needless waste” of some foods.