From: Packaging News

Tesco has urged the government to introduce a “consistent nationwide approach to recycling” as it trials in-store recycling and reusable packaging initiatives.

Reverse vending machines will be installed at its Borehamwood, Swansea, Edinburgh, Manchester and Birmingham and will pay shoppers 10p for every plastic bottle returned.

From next week, consumers will be able to reuse multi-use plastic containers to buy meat cheese or fish from deli and fish counters in UK stores. Products will be weighed and wrapped in paper and placed inside the shopper’s container.

Tesco chief executive Jason Tarry said: “We are already committed to eliminating single use plastic wherever we can and make recycling simpler for customers.

“However, we know that it is going to take retailers, manufacturers and government to work together to make progress. We would urge the government to move to a single, nationwide approach to waste collection that makes it much easier for people to recycle.”

The move was welcomed by Friends of the Earth. In a statement, the organisation said: “It’s great to see another supermarket catching-up with public demand and providing their customers with new ways to reduce plastic waste.

“There is still a long way to go and we hope that Tesco continues this journey towards a plastic pollution-free future. Ultimately, to achieve this we need to end all but the most essential uses of plastic.”