Plastic bottle switch makes Co-op water more eco-friendly
Wednesday, April 4, 2018 - 09:34:16
Bottled water sold under Co-op’s own brand labelling will now use 50 per cent recycled plastic in the construction of its containers, according to the Guardian.
This simple move will mean that each year it will reduce its consumption of plastic by 350 tonnes across its entire chain. This is a small but significant move in the scheme of things; one which could encourage other supermarkets to follow suit and encourage customers to be more ethical when they buy drinks.
The only downside of this change is that the eco-friendly material being used is not completely transparent, but has a slightly grey tint which marks it out from the crowd. Co-op is hoping that shoppers will not be put off by this difference of appearance.
As well as being made from 50 per cent recycled plastic, the bottles themselves can be recycled and they are manufactured domestically, reducing their carbon footprint.
Within the next two years, Co-op will be culling other unsustainable plastics from the packaging it uses. This includes darker plastics which can create problems during the recycling process, even if they are fully recyclable themselves.
Of course, there are innate issues with buying bottled water in the first place, since it has a bigger impact on the environment than drinking tap water, even if the packaging is more ethically sound.
Making recycled products more conspicuous is certainly a positive step, since it means that consumers will be more accustomed to encountering them and choosing them in their daily lives.
Co-op spokesperson, Iain Ferguson, said that efforts would go into making the recycled plastic bottles look exactly the same as their competitors. He also pointed out that the supermarket chain was giving its backing to a new government initiative which will encourage recycling of plastic bottles through a deposit and return payment process.
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