France-based supermarket chain Carrefour has pledged to have 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging for its own-brand products by 2025.
Image: Carrefour plans to use fully recyclable packaging for its own-brand products. Photo: courtesy of Carrefour.
As part of this effort, the retailer intends to eliminate non-recyclable packaging of organic fruit and vegetables.
It also plans to stop selling plastic straws by the end of 2018 and gradually replace plastic straws on juice cartons.
By 2020, the company aims to use recyclable packaging for all its products, starting with its organic Carrefour products, and replace polystyrene trays used in the meat, fish and cheese departments with recyclable packaging.
Additionally, the firm intends to use 50% recycled plastics for its juice and soda bottles and 50% for its water bottles.
Carrefour said in a statement: “Creating a new packaging economy and stamping out plastic waste is a considerable challenge that requires collective action.
“In line with the Circular Economy Roadmap driven by the Ministry for Environmental and Sustainable Transition (Ministère de la transition écologique et solidaire), Carrefour supports the creation of a National Pact for plastics to achieve a 100% circular economy of packaging in France.”
Recently, the European Commission (EC) unveiled plans to ban single-use plastic products such as straws and drink stirrers in bid to reduce marine litter.
The new rule calls on banning of plastic cotton buds, cutlery, plates, straws, drink stirrers and sticks for balloons.
Additionally, the rule entails member states to reduce the use of plastic food containers and drinks cups by promoting alternatives for sale or ensuring they are not offered free.
EU First vice president Frans Timmermans said: “Plastic waste is undeniably a big issue and Europeans need to act together to tackle this problem, because plastic waste ends up in our air, our soil, our oceans, and in our food.”