UK supermarket group Asda has pledged to take further steps to reduce food packaging waste following the announcement that it has joined Incpen, the Industry Council for Packaging and the Environment.
The non-governmental environmental campaign group is focused on making packaging more sustainable throughout the supply chain and already counts fellow UK retailers Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer among its members.
In a statement, Asda said it had already reduced packaging on its own label products by 25 per cent in the last 12 months and would now pool its knowledge and expertise with suppliers, packaging manufacturers and other retailers of packaged goods in a bid to minimise the environmental impact of the product supply chain.
Working through Incpen, Asda said it hoped industry could implement cross-sector improvements to help reduce packaging usage and keep costs to a minimum, enabling supermarkets to pass the resulting savings to their customers.
Shane Monkman, Asda’s packaging buyer, said: “Our customers tell us time and time again that they want to buy good quality food which isn’t packaged excessively, can be easily recycled and has a long shelf life.
“By pooling our resources in a forum dedicated to packaging, we can help pioneer new technologies which will ultimately help our customers reduce the amount of packaging and food waste they throw away – helping them save money in the process.”
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