Sainsbury’s to save 450 tonnes of plastic with vacuum packaged beef in UK first

Sainsbury’s has ramped up plans to ban plastic packaging in stores by introducing a new vacuum-packed alternative across its beef mince range, saving 450 tonnes of plastic annually.

In a UK supermarket first, the new packaging will result in a minimum 55% reduction in plastic per product.

Customers will be able to purchase beef mince in the revamped packaging both in-store and online from today, and the change will be across all of the big 4 grocer’s beef mince products, currently retailing from £1.99 for 500g.

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The new packaging will contain the same amount of beef mince, but is smaller in size, helping customers to use their freezer and fridge space more efficiently.

The beef mince products will also be vacuum-packed for freshness by removing all oxygen, which typically causes a product to eventually spoil.

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.

For example, Sainsbury’s was the first UK supermarket to remove plastic bags for loose fruit, vegetables and bakery items from all stores, as well as the first to remove all black plastic from chilled ready meals in 2019.

“We know our customers expect us to be reducing the use of plastic across our products are and we’re constantly looking for new ways to innovate to meet our Plan for Better plastic reduction targets,” director of product and innovation at Sainsbury’s Claire Hughes said.

She added: “We strive to be bold in the changes we are making, which is why we’re pleased to be the first UK retailer to vacuum pack all our beef mince range without impacting the quantity or great quality of product that our customers expect.

This is the latest in a long line of changes we have pioneered in the space working collaboratively with our suppliers, and customers can expect much more to come from Sainsbury’s,” Hughes commented.

It comes as Sainsbury’s removed single-use plastic lids in December across its own-brand yoghurt, crème fraiche, sour cream, cream, cottage cheese, custard and dip pots, saving 71 million pieces of plastic per year.

Whilst back in September, Sainsbury’s also made its own-brand coffee pod range fully recyclable.