Co-Operative First With Recycled Plastic Roll-Out

The Co-operative Group has become the first retailer in the UK to roll out 100% rPET plastic bottles across its entire own-brand range of carbonated drinks and mixers.

The move to 100% rPET plastic bottles for these beverages, along with the retailer’s own-label 330ml sportscap juice drinks, will reduce CO2 emissions by 1,212 tonnes and save 808 tonnes of new plastic from being made per annum - equivalent to the weight of 180 African elephants.

rPET bottles are made from recycled plastic (polyethylene terephthalate or PET)*. Using rPET instead of virgin (new) PET, saves one-and-a-half tonnes of CO2 for every tonne of plastic used.

As well as being made from recycled plastic, the bottles are fully recyclable and can be collected and recycled alongside regular PET bottles.

The consumer-owned retailer ultimately hopes to roll out rPET bottles across its entire own-brand beverage range where PET plastic bottles are used.

Debbie Robinson, Director of Food Retail Marketing at The Co-operative, commented: “Our members and customers have told us they want to see action on packaging, so we are delighted to be the first major retailer to roll out 100% rPET bottles across our carbonated drinks and mixers range. This follows similar initiatives by The Co-operative, such as the launch of the world’s lightest whisky bottle and the introduction of ‘naked’ cucumbers last year, when our whole cucumbers were stripped of their plastic wrapping.”

Charlotte Henderson, Retail Programme Manager at WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme), a not-for-profit organisation that works with businesses to help minimise waste and promote the efficient use of raw materials, said: "It is good to see the use of recycled content being introduced across an entire category, as we know that for each tonne of rPET that is used instead of virgin PET, 1.5 tonnes of CO2 is saved."

The switch to rPET follows the launch of The Co-operative’s Food Ethical Policy earlier this year, based on the world’s largest consumer poll on ethics. Over 100,000 members and customers said action to safeguard the environment was one of their top priorities and 97% endorsed The Co-operative’s aim to reduce waste and increase recycling.

As a result, the retailer announced that it was dramatically reducing the weight of its own-brand wine bottles.

The Co-operative was recently voted the UK’s most ethical brand in a GfK NOP poll for The Financial Times, published 27 May, 2008. The retailer was also voted “the greenest grocer” in an opinion poll commissioned by The Times (2 April, 2008). According to the poll, consumers believe The Co-operative is doing more than any other major high street food retailer to address social and environmental issues.