UK retail giant Tesco has announced it is to start using discarded plastic collected from coastal areas in its packaging for fresh fish products.
From next week, many of the supermarket chain’s fresh salmon, haddock, cod and seabass lines will be sold for the first time in trays that contain at least 30% recycled coastal plastic collected from beaches, coastlines and coastal communities around the Mediterranean Sea.
The move into the new packaging is expected to remove around 500 tonnes of plastic from the environment each year and reduce the amount of so-called “virgin plastic” required in the packaging.
“Where we can, we are reducing the amount of new plastic we use in our business. Re-using coastal plastic in our fish packaging is one way we can do that and at the same time keep it out of the oceans,” Tesco Quality Director Sarah Bradbury said.
Plastic waste consisting of polypropylene, PET, polyethylene and other types of plastic is being collected from at-risk coastal areas such as beaches, and coastal communities within 10km from the sea, thus prevented from entering the Mediterranean Sea by wind, rain or floods.
Collection and processing are undertaken with full transparency and traceability and certified by non-profit organisation Keep Sea Blue which works with and connects organisations across the supply chain from collection to reuse in new packaging.
This plastic is recovered initially by a network of collectors across the Mediterranean, including volunteer groups involved in beach clean-ups, local authorities, non-profits, and the private sector.
The PET share of the waste is then carefully sorted, grinded, washed and recycled and goes back into food-grade packaging materials.
Through its customised blockchain platform, powered by Oracle Blockchain technology, the organisation monitors and certifies the circularity of plastics ensuring full material traceability.
“Mismanaged plastic waste can only be solved by many partners working together. We are glad that Tesco is making a meaningful and active contribution to this programme towards protecting the Mediterranean Sea from plastic pollution and building a more sustainable future.” Keep Sea Blue Founder Lefteris Bastakis said.
Keep Sea Blue with its certified partners collect, recycle, and reuse over 2,000 tonnes of plastic waste from at-risk Mediterranean areas, keeping it in the packaging loop and away from the sea.
