Media Release
January 24, 2020
183,000 tinned multipacks are bought every day at Tesco.
Today it has announced it will become the first UK retailer to remove them from all Tesco stores and replace them with plastic-free multibuys. This will see 67 million pieces of plastic eliminated.
Tins will be available individually, with no plastic wrap holding them together any more. They’ll still be eligible for multibuy deals, representing the same good value for customers, just without plastic.
More than 40% of Tesco customers include multipacks in their shop. Multipacks of baked beans, tuna, tinned tomatoes and soup are among the most frequently-bought grocery items in the UK.
The change applies to both Tesco own brand products and branded products, like Heinz Beanz. It will help more than eight million households in the UK reduce the amount of plastic they use. It contributes to Tesco’s commitment to remove 1bn pieces of plastic from its own brand products by the end of 2020.
Tesco’s 4Rs strategy – Remove, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – means it will remove non-recyclable and excess packaging from its business. Where packaging can’t be removed, for example where it prevents food waste, Tesco will work with its suppliers to reduce it to an absolute minimum. The retailer will explore new opportunities to reuse packaging and ensure anything left is recycled as part of a closed loop system.
At the end of last year Tesco removed all hard to recycle materials from Tesco own brand products and is working with suppliers to do the same. In August last year, Tesco also briefed 1500 suppliers that packaging will be a factor in its decisions on which products are sold in its stores.
The move was trialled with customers in Tesco’s Bar Hill Extra store. Here, we have a wide range of packaging trials under one roof to assess effectiveness and how customers respond. The removal of plastic-wrapped multipacks is the first major trial to roll out from Bar Hill. It will roll out across all Tesco stores from 2 March.
Source: Tesco PLC.