New World and PAK’nSAVE supermarkets have launched a five-month trial of a new soft-plastics compacting system for customers to use in-store, aimed at making recycling easier and reducing the workload on store teams.
The trial is being run in partnership with The Packaging Forum’s Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme and Manco Environmental.
The machines will be trialled at five stores across the country: New World Whangamatā, New World Whitianga, PAK’nSAVE Thames, New World Birkenhead and New World Matamata.
Foodstuffs Sustainable Packaging Lead, Debra Goulding, said customers have committed to recycling soft plastics through New World and PAK’nSAVE stores, but the current bin-and-bag system can be tough to manage in stores with high return volumes, especially where back-of-store space is limited, or stores are in remote areas.
The new machines are designed for commercial use and can be used directly by customers in-store, reducing the handling required by the store’s team members. They can hold up to five times more plastic than standard soft plastic recycling bins and compact it into sealed liners ready for collection, which means fewer collections and less time spent managing them.
“Because it’s customer-facing, it also makes the recycling process clearer and easier to use, which should help reduce contamination,” said Goulding.
“What makes this different is that it’s front-of-house and designed for customers to use, rather than something tucked away out the back. That’s what makes it a first of its kind.”
Three Coromandel stores are part of the trial, reflecting the added pressure in that region, along with offshore interest from Australia and the UK, which are watching closely to see how this performs with customers in a retail store.
The five-month trial will assess whether customers use the machines correctly and whether they reduce the operational load on store teams.
