- Morrisons will save around 100 tonnes of plastic in move to cardboard cartons
- Carbon neutral Tetra Pak cartons will be made from plant-based paperboard
- They contain thin layer of plastic coating and twist caps made from polyethylene
- Majority of its own-label fresh juice will also move from plastic bottles to cartons
Morrisons has become the first supermarket to scrap plastic milk cartons and replace them with its own-brand fresh milk in plant-based cardboard cartons.
Nine types of Morrisons fresh milk will be sold in carbon neutral Tetra Pak cartons, saving around 100 tonnes of plastic each year.
Fresh milk currently accounts for around 10 per cent of all plastic packaging used in the UK, but the new Tetra Pak cartons will instead be made from plant-based paperboard.
The new cartons contain a very thin layer of plastic coating and twist caps made from polyethylene – procured from sustainably sourced sugarcane.
The nine products have also been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, Carbon Trust and Carbon Neutral.
Tony Fearon, Dairy Category Director at Morrisons, said: ‘Fresh milk does not need to be in a plastic bottle. It keeps just as fresh in a carton.
‘Fresh milk is the top user of plastic packaging in our stores, so this will result in significant plastic reduction.
‘Tetra Pak has also been independently verified as a better sustainable packaging option. If customers take to it, we could be looking to move all of our fresh milk to Tetra Pak cartons in time.’
The cartons will be kerbside recyclable in most regions, as well as recycling banks across the country.
They will come in 500ml, 1 litre and 2 litre sizes and cover skimmed, semi-skimmed and whole milk options, Morrisons has confirmed.
Prices will be 60p for 500ml, 95p for one litre and £1.25 for two litres.
It comes as Morrisons has also announced that the majority of its own-label fresh juice will move from plastic bottles to cartons – a move that will remove a further 678 tonnes of plastic a year.
The supermarket also became the first in the UK to scrap ‘use by’ dates on milk last month.
The company switched to ‘best before’ dates on 90 per cent of milk bottles and cartons from January 31 to encourage customers to bin it only when it smells off – and see the date as no more than a guide to freshness.
Hugh Jones, Managing Director of Advisory at the Carbon Trust, said: ‘We welcome this move by Morrisons towards reducing the environmental impact of its milk packaging.
‘Our Carbon Trust ‘Carbon Neutral’ label, which will feature on these milk products in their new Tetra Pak packaging, recognises the CO2 reduction of this move and certifies that the cradle-to-grave carbon footprint of the packaging is in line with targets.’
Decreasing the volume of single-use plastic in stores is said to be the top concern for the supermarket giant’s customers.
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