51% of supermarket food and drink is packaged in unnecessary plastic
The Material Change Index, which was commissioned by us and conducted by Retail Economics, identified that over half (51%) of food and drink items found in UK supermarkets are unnecessarily1 packaged in plastic that can be safely removed or replaced with alternatives. This adds up to 29.8 billion avoidable pieces annually across the UK.
The Material Change Index research shows that most of that plastic packaging came from processed foods, including ready-meals and meal kits (90%); bread, rice and cereals (89%); dairy products (83%); and meat and fish (80%).
A survey of European food manufacturers and retailers2 carried out as part of the research found that almost all (98%) respondents have commitments to reduce plastic packaging. Three in five (60%) have two years or less left to reach their voluntary targets, but a quarter (25%) say they are off track to reach them. Two in five (40%) identified the cost of raw material as the biggest obstacle, closely followed by the fear that consumers would not accept changes (39%).