This morning’s news has been buzzing with talk of recycling, and questions of which of the leading supermarkets are engaging most effectively in the war against waste.
I for one am pleased to see such questions leading the national headlines, and it certainly made me sit up and take notice as I gulped down my morning toast and tea. It’s good to hear the BBC cross examining Heads of Food Packaging Departments, and I’m satisfied to know that British consumers are becoming discerning and environmentally aware enough to care about which shops are reducing needless packaging and which are gearing up towards the recycling effort. The premise behind the Local Government Association’s Survey of holding supermarkets accountable is a great one, and I’m encouraged to hear that since their 2007 report amounts of food packaging have decreased.
Despite improvement in some areas, the findings of the survey have also resulted in widespread criticisms of the various chains, which have in turn provoked a variety of responses both attacking and defending the key movers and shakers in the supermarket industry. You might not have anticipated this one, but the British Retail Consortium’s Head of Environment Bob Gordon spoke out in favour of some packaging, highlighting that the survey failed to recognise the crucial role packaging plays in preserving food: “It’s a nonsense to suggest that retailers swathe their goods in masses of unnecessary packaging. This would simply be a pointless cost. Packaging reduces waste by protecting and preserving products.”
Read the rest of The Great Packaging Debate »
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