The first food retailer to use compostable packaging
Reducing the amount of waste it sends to landfill is something Sainbury’s takes very seriously. As a major UK food retailer, most of the waste it produces in its stores is in the form of cardboard and plastic packaging and food waste.
“We aim to reduce the waste we produce from our own operations, recover as much as is practical, and ensure that the remainder is disposed of responsibly,” declares the Sainsbury’s website, setting out its goals. As part of this effort, Sainsbury’s has become a leader in the use of compostable packaging.
Waste reduction targets
Sainbury’s has been working to achieve a steady decline in the amount of waste it sends to landfill. There was a decrease of 85,181 tonnes in 2005-06 compared with the previous year, or a 9.9% reduction. Sainsbury’s also increased by 1%, compared to 2004-5, the amount of waste diverted from landfill, primarily by recycling more cardboard and plastic.
In September 2006, Sainsbury’s announced a dramatic project to remove plastic from its own brand packaging, saving nearly 4,000 tonnes of plastic each year, waste that would normally find its way to landfill. Under the new scheme, 150 million plastic trays and bags are set to disappear each year and be replaced with ‘compostable packaging’. As of January 2007, roughly 80% of Sainsbury’s organic fruits and vegetables became available in compostable packaging. From September 2007, so will all of Sainsbury’s Ready Meals, and all organic sausages and organic whole birds will follow suit from October 2007.
How compostable packaging works
In compostable packaging, the plastic is replaced by maize, sugar-cane or starch packaging, sourced from crops that are not genetically modified. The plant-based starch breaks down naturally in a garden compost heap or bin without needing to be binned or bagged and sent to landfill. In tests, most of the compostable packaging was found to break down quicker than a banana skin. All compostable packaging must be certified to the European standard EN13432, which enables the supermarket to display the ‘Compostable’ logo and tells customers that they compost it in a normal garden compost bin. Sainsbury’s is unique in specifying that the materials used in its compostable packaging must come from non-GM sources.
Sainsbury’s first pioneered compostable packaging in 2001. Then in September 2005 it re-launched its organic brand under the ‘SO’ label. The use of compostable packaging was an important part of this new product line. In 2006, compostable packaging was extended from trays and wraps to bags for apples, bananas and other organic produce lines. More recently, that packaging has been tested out on a small range of Sainsbury’s organic apples, tomatoes and potatoes. Now, over 500 items are in the process of being moved over to compostable packaging, making Sainbury’s the single largest user of compostable packaging in Europe.
Where Sainsbury’s cannot use compostable material in organic or conventional produce, it tries to use recyclable materials, thereby saving a further 616 tonnes of plastic. Recent examples include snack salads, deli salads and prepared fruit.
To help customers understand the different types of packaging being used, Sainsbury’s is printing more messages on its food packaging, such as “please recycle” or “sorry, not recyclable” so that customers can easily see which items of packaging can be readily recycled by most local authorities.
Reducing packaging in many different ways
Sainsbury’s is also looking at other ways of reducing packaging waste. Easter, for example, is one of the supermarket’s busiest trading periods. Traditionally, however, Easter eggs use a large amount of packaging, which customers are concerned about. In 2006, Sainsbury’s took steps to reduce the amount of packaging used for its own-brand Easter eggs by 40% compared to 2004. It also ensured that, wherever possible, the packaging was reusable in the form of toys, purses or a gift box. In addition, all materials, such as white cartonboard or PET (polyethylene terephthalate), are easily recycled by customers.
Since June 2006 nearly 80% of Sainsbury’s own-brand Easter egg packaging is recyclable, reusable or compostable; by 2008, 100% of Easter egg packaging will be. The Sainsbury’s SO organic Easter egg is the first Easter egg to use compostable packaging.
For suppliers, too, Sainsbury’s has written packaging standards that encourage them to use only the right amount of packaging and to work through a materials hierarchy that favours recyclable or home compostable materials. Sainsbury’s is also working with suppliers to replace the use of cardboard with returnable transit packaging. Using one reusable crate saves around 21 cardboard boxes. Already the weekly usage of crates in the supply chain has been increased by nearly one million, equating to approximately 8,400 tonnes of cardboard saved.
Recycling into the future
And it doesn’t stop there. In October 2006, Sainsbury’s launched its orange carrier bags, which contain 33% recycled content and 10% chalk—a first in the UK retail sector. It also encourages customers to take advantage of its growing range of re-usable bags.
Sainsbury’s is striving to reduce the amount of food waste its stores generate and send to landfill by donating food to charities and composting. By implementing better controls within stores, using more accurate food ordering systems, and placing an emphasis on targeting food waste, Sainsbury’s was able to reduce by 5,800 tonnes the amount of food waste that went to landfill in 2006 and donate 325 tonnes more food than the previous year.
Women’s Institutes take on supermarkets over food packaging:
On 20 June 2006, the 215,000-strong National Federation of Women’s Institutes held the WI Packaging Day of Action, during which it issued a challenge to supermarkets: cut down on unnecessary food packaging or face a boycott. In addition, the NFWI urged supermarkets to use only compostable and recyclable materials where packaging is required and to purchase more local foods--within a 30-mile radius of the store--to cut down on food miles and reduce the need for packaging. |
Sources:
- Telephone interview with Alison Austin, Head of Brand Policy & Sustainability, Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd.
- Sainsbury's website.
- Women's Institute website.
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