Tesco has eradicated over 20 million pieces of plastic from the supermarket’s 2020 Christmas range – crackers, lights, cards and puddings have all been produced using less single use plastic.
Christmas lights and cards will now be sold in recyclable cardboard packaging. Tesco has also stopped using glitter, which is notoriously damaging for the environment, for all single use products and packaging.
Recent research from Tesco, that examines sales data from purchases compared to the same period year-on-year, found that almost three-quarters (74 per cent) of the public will be considering sustainability when deciding what to buy – an increase of 36 per cent.
The report also uses Opinium research from 27th August to 1st September that polled a nationally representative sample of 2,011 people.
Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of people will reuse wrapping paper, while 19 per cent will try to be more environmentally conscious by not buying gifts, wrapping or decorations made of plastic.
Tesco’s own-label crackers are plastic-free for the first time. This includes non-plastic presents inside and without plastic in cardboard packaging, and expects to cut over 14 million pieces of plastic from the festive range.
This follows criticism received last Christmas from Friends of the Earth and VoucherCodes for not being clear on the recyclability of its Christmas crackers.
Tesco Quality Director, Sarah Bradbury, said: “It is an absolute priority of ours to remove and reduce the amount of plastic in our stores to the minimum and ensure everything we use is recycled and kept out of the environment – Christmas time is no exception and we want to do our bit to help customers have more sustainable celebrations.”
Tesco has been striving to use less plastic as a part of its 4Rs packaging strategy: ‘to Remove it where it can. Reduce where it can't. Reuse more. Recycle what's left’.
This comes after a year of Tesco leading the way with ways to make supermarkets accountable for their contributions to the climate crisis.
Over the course of 2020, it has cut 200,000 tonnes of food waste from its operations, trialled the first recycled food-grade soft plastic packaging and stopped selling plastic-wrapped tinned multipacks.
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How will the government and DMOs address the challenges of including glass in DRS while ensuring a level playing field across the UK?
There's no easy solution to include glass in the DRS while maintaining a level playing field. Potential approaches include a phased introduction of glass, potentially with higher deposits to reflect its logistical challenges. The government and DMOs could incentivise innovation in glass packaging design and subsidise dedicated return points for glass-handling. Exemptions for smaller businesses unable to handle glass might also be necessary. Any successful solution will likely blend several approaches. It must address the differing priorities of devolved administrations, balance environmental benefits with logistical and cost implications, and be supported by robust consumer education campaigns emphasizing the importance of glass recycling.