Walking into Thornton’s Budgens in North London, at first glance, it is like a general supermarket. But when it comes to the fruit and vegetable area, there are no plastic bags, only paper bags, even fresh meat. The big poster on the walkway reads “Plastic Free” because it is the first plastic-free supermarket in the UK!
In early November 2018, this small supermarket officially launched a plastic-free supermarket area. More than 1,800 items were changed to non-plastic packaging. From fruits and vegetables, meat, potato chips, cheese, to bread, it became a succession. The second plastic-free supermarket in the world after Ekoplaza in the Netherlands.
“We are aware of the seriousness of this problem, because most plastic packaging is not recycled, and the plastic will not be decomposed. The plastics that have been manufactured in the past are still 90% still in existence. We should take action, so we decided to do so. Supermarket owner Andrew Thornton said in an interview with Sky TV in the UK.
Plastic packaging is not necessary
He said that many plastic packaging is not necessary. Bread, fresh meat and fish can be packed in paper. The wrapping paper they choose is made of cellulose that makes up the plant cell wall and can be biodegraded directly from compost. The cheese is wrapped in a new transparent wax seal. Even for pre-packaged meat, the bottom box is made of sucrose, which is sealed with cornstarch.
The cheese is wrapped in a new transparent wax seal. Even for pre-packaged meat, the bottom box is made of sucrose, which is sealed with cornstarch.
80% of the fruits and vegetables in the store are sold in bulk, but if they are really sold in pre-packaged form, they use net bags made of beech wood chips, which look like ordinary plastic mesh bags, but they can be biodegraded.
“These are all directly thrown into the compost bin and will disappear after a while,” Songton said.
“We can’t continue to throw more garbage into the sea and into the landfill,” Songton said.
Songdon teamed up with A Plastic Planet, a British environmental group that helped transform Ekoplaza. The original “Plastic Planet” suggested that it takes 4 to 6 months, but Songton hopes to launch 1,500 items on November 5th “Fyke Fawkes Day”, compared to the 700 items that Ekoplaza launched at the beginning. It will have to be doubled.
10 weeks to complete the plastic transformation
With the cooperation of employees, they successfully turned 1825 items into plastic-free packaging within 10 weeks and officially launched on November 8. Although they are three days behind the original target, they are still ahead of many large supermarkets on the road of perpetuity.
“We turned 1800 items into unplasticized packaging in 10 weeks, and my colleagues have been betting a lot of time, so it is difficult to say, but it is not very difficult,” Songton said.
Although the current package is relatively expensive, Thornton believes that as time goes by, the price will drop as the usage increases.
Strictly speaking, Ekoplaza or Songdun Buzhen supermarkets are not 100% plastic supermarkets, but at least they have taken a step. Songton hopes to turn the entire supermarket into a completely non-plastic in the next three years and hopes to inspire other large supermarkets to introduce more sustainable practices.
“One of our attempts is to let the big supermarkets know that this is feasible,” Songton said.
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