Aldi cuts down on plastic waste for its bananas

Aldi, the UK’s fourth largest supermarket, will be carrying out a trial that removes plastic waste from its bananas.

The trial will be carried out in stores across the UK including the North East, Yorkshire, the South West, the South East and the Midlands.

Instead of using plastic packaging on the fruit, Aldi will be replacing the traditional plastic bag with a paper band alternative on selected lines.

Some lines included in this packaging trial are Nature’s Pick five-pack, midi bananas as well as its Organic six-pack of bananas.

In the UK alone, consumers eat around 5 billion bananas year on year. This suggests that plastic packaging on bananas alone could generate a considerable amount of plastic waste.

However, Aldi has claimed that if their packaging change is successful, it would help to remove an estimated 234 tonnes of plastic packaging per year.

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“At Aldi, we know how important reducing plastic is to our customers, colleagues and the future of the planet,” said Luke Emery, Plastics and Packaging Director at Aldi”.

“We are constantly reviewing ways we can do this, and our latest trial on bananas is another great step on that journey.”

New Food has reported on various UK supermarkets making suitable adjustments to its food and drink packaging in recent years. However Aldi alone appears to be committed in this space, with he discount retailer introducing thinner bags for its onions, something it says will save 13 tonnes of plastic annually.

What’s more, it is also replacing the current non-recyclable packaging on its Specially Selected West Country and Yorkshire block butter with a paper-based alternative wrap which can be recycled at home.