Italian retail consortium Supermercati Uniti Nazionali (SUN) will equip all 600 of its supermarkets with bioplastic bags as part of an initiative aimed at environmental protection.
The bioplastic bags are made of Mater-Bi, a technology developed by bioplastics firm Novamont, thanks to proprietary technologies in the field of starch, cellulose, vegetable oils and their compositions. With characteristics very similar to traditional plastics, Mater-Bi bioplastic is biodegradable and compostable under the European standard EN 13432.
According to SUN chairman Marco Odolini, the shopping bags will replace traditional plastic bags and optimise the management of organic waste, reduce environmental impact, and contribute to the development of systems with significant benefits throughout the production-consumption-disposal cycle. He added that the initiative could be extended in the future to other categories, such as fruit and vegetable bags.
The new Mater-Bi bags will be stocked by all retailers that are part of the SUN consortium: Gruppo Gabrielli (based in Ascoli), Alfi (Alessandria), Gruppo Romano Supermercati – GROS (Rome), Italmark (Brescia) and Cadoro (Venice).
A recent Ipsos survey revealed that over 92% of Italians go shopping at the supermarket with reusable plastic bags, and 82% have a positive view of the law that kick-started the transition from traditional plastic bags to biodegradable bags.
In addition, 87% are in favour of the initiative of switching to biodegradable bags for fruit and vegetables – a European directive that will take effect by the end of 2018.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up for ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
