Waitrose & Partners is to remove traditional plastic bags for loose fruit and vegetables and 5p single-use plastic bags from its stores by next spring.
The supermarket said the move would cut 134m plastic bags, the equivalent of 500 tonnes of plastic a year.
The fruit and vegetable bags will be replaced by a home compostable alternative, derived from corn starch, which the retailer said would look and feel similar to the current ones and could be placed in food waste caddies or broken down in landfill if put in a normal bin.
Friends of the Earth welcomed the retailer’s attempt to reduce its plastic footprint but expressed doubt that compostable bags were the answer.
Emma Priestland, a plastics campaigner at the environmental group, said: “It’s good to see big companies like Waitrose looking for ways to reduce the plastic in their stores. But compostable, bio-based bags aren’t necessarily the gold-star solution they first appear. This is a case of swapping one kind of single-use plastic for another, when actually removing the packaging entirely would be the best option.
Why is plastic being demonised?
Since the 1950s, 8.3bn tonnes of plastic has been produced. Plastic is seen as a versatile, indispensable product, but the environmental impact is becoming more stark. Plastic is now so pervasive that recycling systems cannot keep up and the leakage into the environment is such that by 2050 plastic in the ocean will outweigh fish. In 2017 scientists found plastic fibres in tap water, and plastic has been found in the stomachs of sea creatures in the deepest part of the ocean. Most plastic waste ends up in landfill sites or leaks into the natural environment, where it is causing huge damage to eco-systems on land and sea, creating near permanent contamination. According to academics in the United States, by 2015, of all the plastic waste generated since the 1950s, only 9% has been recycled, with 12% incinerated and 79% accumulated in landfill sites or the environment.
Why are the supermarkets under fire?
Producers of plastic include retailers, drinks companies and supermarkets. Supermarkets create more than half of the plastic waste in the household stream in the UK. But they refuse to reveal how much they put on to the streets and how much they pay towards recycling it. Supermarkets are under pressure to reduce their plastic packaging and campaigners argue they have the power to turn off the tap. Much of the packaging they sell to consumers is not recyclable: plastic film, black plastic trays, sleeves on drinks bottles and some coloured plastic. The Recycling Association and other experts believe supermarkets could do much more to make packaging 100% recyclable and reduce the use of plastic.
Who pays to clean up the waste?
The taxpayer, overwhelmingly. UK producers and retailers pay among the lowest towards recycling and dealing with their waste in Europe. In other countries, the “polluter” is forced to pay much more. In France, a sliding system of charges means those who put more non- recyclable material on the market pay more.
What can shoppers do to help?
Supermarkets are under pressure, not least from the prime minister, to create plastic-free aisles. A growing number of zero-waste shops are springing up and consumers are being encouraged to ask for products to be sold without plastic.
Sandra Laville
“Ultimately, to turn the tide on plastic pollution, we need to get rid of all but the most essential plastics, and we need action from government to make that happen.”
The group’s concerns echo those of the UN’s top environmental scientist, Jacqueline McGlade, who said earlier this year that biodegradable plastic bags were a false solution.
The 5p bags will be removed from six shops: Saxmundham, Gerrards Cross, Keynsham, Dorking, Newark and East Putney, from 8 October to help ensure a smooth changeover before Waitrose & Partners phases them out elsewhere later in the year.
Waitrose & Partners has started to remove all takeaway disposable coffee cups from its shops; they have gone from more than 300 of its 348 stores.
Waitrose & Partners has also already pledged not to sell any own-label food in black plastic beyond 2019 and to make all of its own-label packaging widely recyclable, reusable or home compostable by 2025.
The supermarket’s latest announcement comes amid mounting evidence that environmental concerns around plastic waste are moving up the priority list for shoppers when purchasing goods.
The government is exploring extending the 5p plastic bag charge, as well as the possibility of aisles in supermarkets stocking products with plastic-free packaging.
Tor Harris, the head of corporate social responsibility, health and agriculture for the supermarket, said: “The removal of these bags will change the way our customers, many of whom have been asking us to do this, shop with us in the future. We know we still have a lot to do, but … this represents another major step forward in reducing our use of plastics.”
