Portuguese retail chain Continente, a part of MC Sonae, has eliminated plastic lids from own-brand liquid yoghurts.
The measure, which it says is a first among retailers in Portugal, to aims to prevent plastic from reaching marine ecosystems, in particular, where they are one of the main causes of pollution as well as animal deaths by ingestion.
Plastic caps are at the top of plastic waste collected in beach cleanups because they do not pass the waste sorting stage due to their size and weight. As a result, they are inadvertently diverted from the 'route' of waste management systems, the company noted.
This change, which is already being rolled out in stores, will save around 100 tonnes of plastic per year, thus reducing by 15% the amount of this material in the estimated 69 million bottles of liquid yoghurt sold per year.
Continente's own-brand yoghurts will also undergo another change in their packaging: the label will no longer indicate the expiry date under the description 'consume by' to 'consume preferably before', as it aims to reduce food waste.
Plastic Reduction
According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation Global Commitment Report, which annually tracks the progress of the more than 500 signatories of the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, MC continues to outperform the retail average when compared to signatories around the world and its sector, and the best result among all retailers operating in Portugal.
Nationally, MC leads in the percentage of packaging that is already reusable, recyclable, or compostable and this project reinforces this brand commitment.
Last year, the retailer reached an 80% recyclability rate for its plastic packaging, a growth of 5.3% compared to 2021, and the incorporation of 14.1% of recycled raw material (+2.0%).
Additionally, the brand created an eco-design manual to ensure the development of more sustainable and effective recyclable packaging, from scratch.
