Supermarket Giant Removes a Billion Pieces of Plastic From Its Shelves

Britain’s largest supermarket chain met its 2020 pledge of removing 1 billion pieces of plastic from its stores in the United Kingdom, especially by banning plastic wrap around the products that land on its shelves.

“Our own-label and branded suppliers have had a lot to contend with in 2020 so removing a billion pieces of plastic is fantastic progress,” says Sarah Bradbury, Tesco quality director. “Our work to remove, reduce, reuse and recycle will continue into 2021. There is no place for unnecessary or non-recyclable packaging in our business.”

Tesco worked closely with more than 1,000 suppliers to get rid of excess plastic wrapping material around products like loose vegetables, fruits, and baked goods, multi-packs of tinned food, Christmas products, and greeting cards. In early 2020, by banning plastic-wrapped multipacks alone, Tesco was able to save 67 million pieces of plastic. “Businesses, governments, and households have all got an important part to play [to deal with the environmental crisis we are faced with], so it’s encouraging to see Tesco delivering against their commitments to significantly reduce the amount of plastic we use,” says Paula Chin, sustainable materials specialist at conservation charity World Wildlife Foundation.