Waitrose to Stop Selling Packs of Plastic Straws by September 2018 and Reduce Black Plastic Trays

The supermarket Waitrose will remove black plastic trays from meat, fish and fruit and veg ranges by end of year.

The retailer has today announced that it will stop selling packs of disposable straws from September 2018. This builds on its track-record for being the first supermarket to stop selling items containing microbeads from September 2016 and switching exclusively to paper-stem cotton buds. Plastic straws will be replaced by non-plastic alternatives.

The supermarket is also reducing its reliance on black plastic trays with the ultimate aim of no longer using them. Waste processors find it difficult to detect the black plastic which means that they are difficult to recycle. From the end of 2018 all Waitrose own-label meat, fish and fruit and veg will no longer be in black trays. The supermarket has already removed 65% of black plastic packaging from fresh fruit and vegetables.

Waitrose is committed to making all its own-label packaging widely recyclable (using the widely recycled logo), reusable, or home compostable by 2025. Since 2009 it has reduced its overall packaging by nearly 50%.

Tor Harris, Head of Sustainability and Responsible Sourcing at Waitrose, said:

‘‘Phasing out packs of single use straws and black trays shows how seriously we are taking the challenge of cutting down our use of plastics and reducing our impact on the environment.’’

Article source/image credit: Waitrose