As part of a trial with Recycling Technologies, Tesco will be collecting previously unrecyclable plastics in 10 of its stores in the Bristol and Swindon areas.
“Our trial with Recycling Technologies will make even more of our packaging recyclable and help us reach our target. This technology could be the final piece of the jigsaw for the UK plastic recycling industry,” commented Tesco’s director of quality, Sarah Bradbury.
Customers will be able to return items such as pet food pouches, shopping bags and crisp packets that are not normally collected by councils. These will then be converted using Recycling Technologies Plaxx process into an oil that can be used to make new plastic.
“Using our specialist feedstock recycling process, we keep more plastic waste in the economy and out of landfill and our oceans. This initiative with Tesco is designed to show there are solutions to recover this important material. Our goal is to double the UK’s capacity to recycle plastic waste by 2027,” said Recycling Technologies chief executive Adrian Griffiths.
83% of Tesco’s own label packaging is recyclable and this could reach 90% if the Recycling technologies trial is extended to all its stores, the equivalent of 65,000 tonnes of plastic a year. Tesco is working towards all its packaging being fully recyclable by 2025.
