Who needs excessive packaging?
We’ve been wondering why retailers feel the need to use 3 layers of plastic to wrap up a few apples, or why fruit needs to be packaged at all. There’s a campaign at Youwish.com to let supermarkets know that a label that is defiantly anti packaging would go down well with consumers, you can join up by clicking “make this wish mine” from the following link.
Who needs excessive packaging?
I can’t think who benefits from it, it’s extra cost for retailers, bad for the environment and most consumers don’t like it either.
12/03/2009 at 3:56 pm Permalink
It seems to me that the supermarkets are deliberately using pre-packaged fruit & vegetables to actually charge consumers more per kg for the same product bought loose.
Its a deliberate strategy to maximise margins as observed on multi-buy products like orange juice and washing powder where they use 3for2 discounts to entice you to buy 3 x 1lt bottles when its in fact still cheaper and more environmentally friendly to buy 1 larger volume container. Now that labelling shows comparative prices per KG or number of washes they have nowhere to hide.
12/03/2009 at 4:06 pm Permalink
Exactly.
In Germany you can remove all excessive packaging at the supermarket checkout, the supermarket are then obligated to take it and dispose of it in an environmentally friendly way. Giving them an incentive to keep the packaging light as they don’t want to have to pay to dispose of it!
08/04/2009 at 6:01 pm Permalink
Isn’t it great that businesses are listening!
On April 1st, the Guardian printed a column about Tesco’s new initiative. They’ve started piloting a system whereby customers are allowed to leave excessive and unwanted packaging near the tills, for recycling. The trials are taking place at Guildford in Surrey and Ilminster in Somerset. Tesco aims to divert 95% of store waste from landfill by the end of 2009. A Local Government Association
report found that Waitrose had the most packaging and Tesco the least.
Waitrose, catch up!