A petition calling on supermarkets to stop selling raw fruit and vegetables in plastic packaging has gained over 30,000 signatures.
The petition, which was launched by an anonymous individual with the initials IR on the Change.org platform three months ago, is close to reaching its target of 35,000 backers. It will then be delivered to Parliament.
The petition centres around the use of packaging for fruit and vegetables, pointing out that many supermarkets and greengrocers offer both pre-packed and loose. It argues that there is “no reason why fruit and vegetables (with very rare exceptions) can’t be sold in their natural form by weight.”
It suggests supermarkets could also replace the small clear plastic bags they they place in fruit and veg aisles with brown paper ones, and that soft and other fruits could be sold in rugged cardboard punnets instead of plastic ones.
The petition cites environmental concerns as the major reason for its complaint, though it makes no reference to the shelf-life extension and waste reduction provided by much modern packaging.
“The UK government rightly stopped the supermarkets from offering plastic carrier bags for free and they also have the power to stop retailers from offering fruit and vegetables pre-packed in plastic packaging, which is not necessary and causes pollution,” it concludes.
However the petition received short shrift from the packaging industry. Dick Searle, chief executive of the Packaging Federation, told FPJ that supermarket trials had shown selling most produce loose led to huge increases in wastage. 'If people care about the environment they should focus on the big issues,' he said. 'Plastic does a fantastic job in extending shelf life. It's just nonsense to be focusing on something that's there to protect the product. People are not engaging their brains.'
Searle added that what people say in surveys and what they actually do when shopping are two different things, and pointed to WRAP research underlining the positive impact of packaging.
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