Marks & Spencer has announced it is the first UK retailer to move to paper packaging on garlic baguettes, removing 5.5 million units of plastic from its shelves.
All of M&S’s single and twin garlic baguettes are now available in FSC approved paper packaging which consumers can easily recycle at home.
A popular choice with shoppers, the single garlic baguette is M&S’s biggest seller in garlic breads, selling 4.3 million units each year.
Reducing plastic packaging is one of the key issues M&S customers care strongly about, and the retailer has been taking action, such as being the first UK retailer to introduce a fully recyclable paper fibre coffee cup and lid earlier this year.
Other industry leading moves include switching from plastic bags to paper ones on bunches of bananas and switching key produce lines such as tomatoes and mushrooms to cardboard solutions.
Plan A
At the end of last year, M&S also announced that it met its target to remove 75 million units of plastic in 2023/24 four months earlier than planned.
The brand is committed to removing 1 billion units of plastic from shelves by 2027 as part of its Plan A roadmap to be net zero by 2040.
Speaking about the packaging, the head of sustainability at M&S Lucinda Langton said, “We know our customers rank packaging as a top priority and M&S is committed to reducing plastic packaging as a key part of our Plan A roadmap to Net Zero.
“It is a good step forward to remove 5.5 million units from our supply chain and we continue to work with our suppliers to find innovative new materials, processes, and equipment so we can make change at scale.
“These changes mean our customers can trust that the M&S quality products they love are made, sourced and packaged with care.”
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