UK | Sainsbury’s has announced it is swapping traditional plastic tray packaging for a new vacuum-packed alternative across its entire fresh lamb mince range, saving 26 tonnes of plastic annually.
Another supermarket-first for Sainsbury’s, the new packaging will reduce plastic use by at least 65 percent per product. The change will apply to all Sainsbury’s fresh lamb mince products, which start at just £3.95 for 250g.
Customers can purchase lamb mince in the revamped packaging both in-store and online. These products will be vacuum-packed for freshness, removing all oxygen that typically causes a product to spoil more quickly.
This will increase the life of the current product and also allow it to last better in the freezer. The new packaging will contain the same amount of lamb mince at the same quality customers can expect from Sainsbury’s. New QR codes will be on the packaging to advise you on how to cook the mince.
“We know customers want us to reduce plastic packaging, and that’s why we’re committed to making bold changes which benefit the environment as well as helping customers to reduce plastic waste at home,” said Richard Crampton, Director of Fresh Food at Sainsbury’s.
“Once again, we’re the first major supermarket to switch to vacuum-packed packaging on a popular product that our customers buy week in, week out. This change more than halves the plastic used in our lamb mince range.”
The new packaging will be recyclable in-store at supermarkets, including Sainsbury’s flexible plastic recycling collection points, which are available in all of its supermarkets.
The move is the latest in a string of changes made by the retailer in a bid to halve its use of own-brand plastic packaging by 2025. Sainsbury’s was the first UK supermarket to vacuum pack beef mince.
More recently, Sainsbury’s announced the move from plastic packaging to cardboard for all its own-brand mushrooms, saving over 775 tonnes of plastic a year, in its most significant plastic packaging move.
