Customers picking up fresh mince in some Tesco stores will notice a significant change in how it's packaged. Instead of the traditional tray top wrap pack, shoppers will see two lines of mince in new 'pillow packs'.
The supermarket is trialling the new packaging, which uses 70 percent less plastic, on two lines, the 500g Tesco Beef Lean Steak Mince 5 percent fat (£3.49) and the Tesco Beef Mince 500g 20 percent fat (£2.49). If customers like the new pillow packs, Tesco will roll them out to more stores and across more lines.
Pillow packs are the opposite of vacuum packs. The slightly inflated 'pillow' keeps the mince in perfect condition and prevents it from being compressed.
While the new packs still contain the same amount of mince as the old ones, the packaging is smaller, meaning fewer lorries are needed to transport them, and stores can fit more on shelves, increasing availability.
The new packaging is recyclable. Customers can put it into the front of store recycling units with their other soft plastic.
Dominic Morrey, Tesco Commercial Director for Fresh, said that customers looking for great value when they shop also want less plastic packaging in their trolleys.
"Pillow packs are a win-win: they keep the mince in perfect condition while requiring much less plastic," said Morrey.
"Removing or reducing unnecessary plastic is an important way that Tesco can reduce its environmental impact. We're proud of what we have done so far but continue to look for ways to do more."
Tesco's four R's packaging strategy aims to remove plastic where it can, reduce where it can't, reuse more and recycle what's left. To date, Tesco has removed around 2.2 billion pieces of plastic from its UK business, including over 200 million bags from Tesco.com deliveries, over 100 million extra lids from products such as wipes, creams, yogurts and desserts, and 50 million pieces of plastic wrapping from cans of branded beers and ciders.
