LAUNCHED IN SELECTED UK STORES IN DECEMBER 2020, OUR NEW RETAIL CARRIER BAG HAS BEEN REDESIGNED WITH SUSTAINABILITY AT ITS HEART TO SUPPORT OUR BRAND RESET.
BY MOVING PRODUCTION FROM CHINA TO WALES AND REDUCING ITS WEIGHT BY >40% WE’VE SAVED 356 TONNES CO2e pa – EQUIVALENT TO 51 TRIPS AROUND THE WORLD IN A CAR.
As one of the single largest items we buy in a year, at about 8 million units, our retail bags have been through many improvement cycles to reduce their environmental impact.
In 2018 we introduced FSC recycled paper into the bag and re-engineered the handle from Cotton to Paper to make it fully recyclable. In truth, the bag was made in China and travelled around 11,000 miles to reach our UK and European customers.
How is it more sustainable?
By identifying a new automated source, based in Wales, just 60 miles from our global head office – and significantly closer to our store estate – we’ve reduced the distance travelled and therefore lowered the carbon footprint from its production and transport by >60% compared to the old bag.
We combined this priority with our Zero Waste; Lower Impact focus to create a bag that performs just as well but uses the minimal amount of material possible.
The redesigned bag is 42g lighter, saving >340 tonnes paper each year, and further lowering its footprint by using fewer input materials and in using less energy again in transportation.
The bag remains 100% FSC Recycled paper to protect the world’s forests, is fully recyclable and is now also supporting the UK local economy in order to champion a green recovery from Covid-19.
Our new bag therefore provides a drastically more sustainable option for one of our most prominent and high-volume items across the business.
Redesigning our bag is part of our ongoing work to meet our ambitious sustainability goals, support the Sustainable Development Goals and a green recovery.
In order to avoid unnecessary waste, we’re making sure we use up all the existing stock of our old bag, meaning the new bag will start to make its way across the rest of our global store estate later in 2021.
