Retail giant Carrefour has signed a pact with the ministry of ecological transition in France to eliminate plastic packaging by 2025.
Image: French retailer Carrefour has signed pact to eliminate plastic packaging by 2025. Photo: courtesy of Carrefour.
Carrefour has formalized its responsibility to decrease plastic pollution with the signing of a national pact.
As part of its commitment, the retailer has taken various initiatives, which will help eliminate over 140 tons of plastic being used per year.
The pact has also been signed by Auchan Retail France, Biscuits Bouvard, Coca-Cola European Partners, Danone, L´Oréal, LSDH, Nestlé France, Système-U, Unilever, the Tara Foundation and WWF France to implement more sustainable steps for reducing plastic packaging.
In May 2018, Carrefour pledged to reduce its use of plastic and committed to have recyclable or compostable packaging for its products by 2025.
Carrefour also requesting major companies in the retail sector, as well as NGOs and consumers to join the initiative to combat plastic pollution.
According to Carrefour, packaging accounts for 45% of the total amount of plastic used and only 25% of household plastic packaging is effectively recycled in France.
The pact will enable Carrefour to optimize its eco-design efforts, as well as produce advanced solutions.
Carrefour also noted that the commitment is in line with the group’s stated aim of becoming the world leader in the food transition with its Act For Food program.
Carrefour has already avoided the use plastic straws, and is planning to remove more solutions over the next few weeks to reduce plastic pollution.
The retailer will replace polystyrene trays with cardboard trays in the cheese section this year, which will help avoid the use of 111 tons of plastic during the same period.
Carrefour will also avoid the use of plastic sachets for organic fair-trade bananas, enabling to curb around 23 tons of plastic every year.
The use of plastic films enveloping cucumber will also be replaced by bands, and plastic packaging will be completely eliminate for them from next March, enabling to save 6.5 tons of plastic per year.
In addition, Carrefour allows its customers to bring their own containers for products such as fish, butchery/cooked meats, cheese, delicatessen and pastry.