Aldi Just Announced a Big Grocery Change That Will Impact Shoppers

We’re all trying to do our best when it comes to reducing waste in the kitchen, like using reusable straws, composting food scraps, and trying to cook with leftovers to reduce overall food waste. But there are still a lot of unnecessary uses of plastic out there, particularly when it comes to food packaging. Thankfully, stores like Aldi are thinking of solutions to package your food safely, and reduce plastic waste at the same time.

Aldi U.K. plans on cutting 234 tons of plastic packaging by swapping their banana plastic bags to paper bands, according to Packaging Gateway. This includes a variety or product packs including Nature’s Pick five-packs and organic six packs. As of right now, Aldi U.K. is piloting this program to see how things go before doing a larger push on this change in packaging.

This effort to reduce plastic waste from banana packaging is part of a larger effort Aldi has embarked on to reduce waste. Other plastic initiatives include using thinner bags for onions, recyclable paper for block butter, and recyclable plastic bottles for dish soap. These efforts alone have helped to eliminate 142 tons of plastic going to landfill.

“At Aldi, we know how important reducing plastic is to our customers, colleagues and the future of the planet,” said Aldi plastics and packaging director Luke Emery to Packaging Gateway. “We are constantly reviewing ways we can do this, and our latest trial on bananas is another great step on that journey.”

According to Plastic Oceans, the world produces 380 million tons of plastic every year, and 50% of those are single-use plastics, like packaging for produce. Around 10 million tons of plastic are also dumped into the ocean every year, contributing to larger global issues like harming marine life and swirling pools of garbage referred to as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Not to mention the greenhouse gas emissions that are released into the air during the production of plastic as well as the transportation of these items, which contributes to global warming.

While this particular effort to change banana packaging may seem small compared to the massive problem that is plastic waste, these types of changes are what adds up over time, and contribute to a healthier, greener world in the long run.