The UK’s largest supermarkets have almost halved the number of single-use plastic bags they hand out, the latest figures from the Government-backed Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) claimed today (17 July).
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The number of bags has fallen by 48% from 2006 levels, WRAP said. The result is set against a targeted reduction of 50%, agreed by the British Retail Consortium’s retailer members and the UK government.
For the month of May 2006, 870m plastic carrier bags were used. In May 2009, this figure had been reduced to 420m. If the level of usage remained stable for the entire year, this would equate to annual consumption of 5.6bn bags, down from 10.7bn in 2006, WRAP said.
“The overall 48% reduction in single use carrier bags by the participating retailers demonstrates the continued rate of progress in this area, despite falling just short of the target figure. WRAP will continue to work alongside industry to deliver further reductions,” Dr Liz Goodwin, WRAP CEO, said.
Asda, The Co-operative Group, Marks and Spencer, Sainsbury’s, Somerfield, Tesco and Waitrose are all participating in the agreement.
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By GlobalDataBritish Retail Consortium director general Stephen Robertson described the reduction as a “spectacular achievement”, especially given the 5% sales volume increase seen by participating retailers between 2006 and 2008.
“Changing customer habits on this scale, this quickly, isn’t easy… These figures send a clear message: the voluntary approach is very successful and can lead to better informed customers and lasting change,” he added.
