The UK produces 3.6 million tonnes of plastic waste every year, 1.5 million tonnes of which takes the form of packaging that passes through households like mine. So the government has taken a stand. This week, large shops became required by law to charge 5p for every single-use plastic carrier bag they give out.
According to Defra, supermarkets gave out 8 billion, or 57,000 tonnes, of plastic bags in 2013. And I’m more than happy to embrace my ‘bag for life’. But how much difference will it really make, however, given the overabundance of plastic packaged products that will go inside it?
I call up a charity calked ‘Wrap’, which since 2005 has overseen The Courthauld Commitment, an agreement between grocery retailers and manufacturers to work towards the government’s goal of a ‘zero waste economy’. It’s had significant successes, including a 10 per cent drop in greenhouse gas emissions relating to packaging between 2010 and 2012. Still, they tell me, plastic carrier bags account for just 2.5 per cent of current plastic packaging waste.
So, how easy is it to take action yourself, and simply stop buying plastic packaged goods? Armed with just a jute bag, two crumpled old carrier bags and a crusading spirit, I head off to the supermarket to attempt an entirely plastic-packaging free weekly shop.
My mission starts well in the fruit and veg aisle. While almost everything is offered in a choice of plastic bag or plastic tray enveloped in a plastic wrapper, I find nearly everything I need being sold loose too. With carrier bags now carrying a penalty, it seems odd to be greeted every few paces by polythene bags in which to put this loose produce. Ignoring these, however, I soon have potatoes, broccoli, apples and pears rolling around in the bottom of my trolley (they will later get muddled up on the conveyer belt and the cashier will look daggers at me while weighing them).
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