UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s is enhancing its sustainability commitments by revealing plans to launch a new film recycling system.

To be introduced in select stores, the new system will enable customers to recycle polypropylene (PP) film such as salad bags, frozen food bags, biscuits and cake wrappers.

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The retailer pledged to reduce the use of plastic packaging to half by 2025. It also aims to become net zero in its operations by 2040.

Sainsbury’s noted that the system is currently being piloted in 63 supermarkets across the North East.

The retailer will roll out the PP film collection system to all its supermarkets by the end of 2021 based on trial success.

Sainsbury’s product and innovation director Claire Hughes said: “Sainsbury’s is dedicated to trialling and testing new initiatives as part of our ongoing commitment to make it easier for customers to recycle.

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“We hope that by trialling flexible film recycling points in our stores and accepting more of the packaging that our customers may be unable to recycle at home, we are helping our customers reduce plastic waste.

“We’ll listen to feedback from our colleagues and customers before we roll out the flexible plastic packaging recycling scheme wider.

“As we work to reduce, reuse, replace and recycle plastic packaging, we’ll continue to find collaborations, working with our suppliers, academics and organisations such as WRAP to explore innovative ways to reduce and recycle more of our packaging.”

Last month, Sainsbury’s announced plans for a mass roll-out of its first plant-based own-brand teabags.

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