Organic Supermarket of The Year, Sainsbury's, will be the first retailer to trial a new form of biodegradable packaging, wholly made from plant fibre residue such as straw, sugar cane and fruit bunches from palm trees.
Developed by Biopac, the plant fibre trays will be used for Sainsbury’s organic produce - starting this week with tomatoes - with a view to roll out to the rest of the organic range within the next six months. The trays take six to eight weeks to biodegrade in a commercial composting environment.
Sourced from Malaysia, the packaging is derived from 100 per cent waste material, and contains no bleaches or hazardous chemicals. The material used was previously being discarded or burnt, with a significant environmental impact.
The Malaysian government has been looking at ways to reduce the effect of this burning by taking the spare residue and creating a useful bi-product.
Using unique technology, their researchers have been able take waste material and produce a wide range of packaging containers that are completely biodegradable. The project also allows agricultural producers to diversify into new markets.
Anome Oyetey, Sainsbury’s organic produce buyer, said: “The new plant fibre trays are an environmentally sound addition to our organic range, helping reduce the amount of waste material both here in the UK and in Malaysia.”
Sainsbury’s is researching ways to replicate the technology used in the production of the plant fibre trays and manufacture them closer to the UK.
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