Asda has blamed its customers for the failure of a trial to drastically reduce packaging in-store.
The retailer has shelved its scheme, ‘Leave It With Us’, which urged Asda customers to return examples of excessive packaging to bins at its York and Dewsbury stores, according to The Grocer.
Just four weeks into the project, the UK’s second largest supermarket chain has admitted defeat and will not look to extend it nationally. Shane Monkland, Asda’s packaging buyer, told the magazine: “The trial won’t be rolled out nationally as it is hard to get customers off their backsides.”
Instead, Asda has introduced a new website through which consumers can make their complaints.
Produce was singled out as one of the worst offending categories by Monkland, who lamented that consumers’ apparent concern for the environment does not always translate into action.
Meanwhile Asda has also announced that it is removing artificial colours and flavours from all of its private label food and beverage products.
The decision comes just a week after details were leaked to the press of a study by researchers at Southampton University for the Food Standards Agency, which concluded that several artificial additives increase the risk of hyperactivity and unruly behaviour in young children.
The suspects reportedly include sunset yellow (E110), allura red AC (E129) and the preservative sodium benzoate.
Asda has pledged to remove any artificial colours or flavours from its 9,000 own label products, as well as aspartame, hydrogenated fat and flavour enhancers such as monosodium glutamate.
Darren Blackhurt, Asda’s food trading director, said: “We know that our customers, particularly those that are mums and dads, are becoming more and more concerned about what’s in the food they buy.”
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