German discounter Penny, which is part of Rewe Group, has announced that it is reducing packaging of fresh bananas in store, in a move that will save the equivalent of 900 football fields’ worth of plastic per year.
Penny sells around 35,000 tonnes of bananas a year, and according to Stefan Magel, the retailer’s COO, “[It is] working hard wherever possible to dispense with plastic packaging or to replace them with modern alternatives.”
The initiative will be introduced in Penny stores in northern Germany in March, before a nationwide roll-out across 2,150 stores over the summer.
Magel added that the retailer’s customers have a “clear expectation” that the retailer is active in eco-friendly initiatives.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
