Sainsbury’s is switching its own-brand twin pack avocado packaging from plastic to paper in a move which will eventually save 20.2 million pieces of plastic a year upon full rollout.

Starting with a trial across 77 of the supermarket giant’s stores, the by Sainsbury’s Ripe & Ready Avocados twin pack consists of paper with bamboo netting, a solution that is fully recyclable at kerbside.

Following successful completion of the trial, a wider rollout is anticipated to start later this year in-store and online.

Sainsbury’s director of product and innovation Claire Hughes said: “Switching to paper packaging across our Ripe & Ready Avocados twin pack is one of the many steps we are taking to fulfill our commitment towards a greener future.

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“The initiative reflects our continuous efforts to help develop more sustainable and innovative packaging solutions and we’re excited for our customers to try out the new packaging in-store”.

The move forms part of Sainsbury’s broader strategy to cut down on plastic usage, having implemented various initiatives over the past few years.

Last year, the grocer made the move from plastic to cardboard punnets across a range of its Taste the Difference berries and cherries to save over 160 tonnes of plastic per year.

Meanwhile, its switch to cardboard mushroom punnets has saved around 775 tonnes of plastic each year and transitioning all kitchen and toilet roll packaging from plastic to paper reduced over 485 tonnes annually.