In Italy, Co-op UK and Novamont, a bioplastics leader, signed a collaboration agreement aimed at supplying the British distribution chain with a new type of bioplastic shopping bags, as an alternative to traditional non-biodegradable and non-compostable plastic bags. The new shopping bags will have the same size, strength and price (5 pence) of those in traditional plastic and have been developed in close collaboration with the entire supply chain.
The decision is part of an aggressive ethical strategy launched on September 27 by Co-op, thanks to which approximately 60 million single-use shopping bags, which amount to almost 340 tons of plastic, will be phased out. The program defines the ways in which Co-op UK bans the disposable plastic products characteristic of the brand and reduces the overall use of plastic packaging within five years, in addition to the abandonment of materials that are difficult to recycle, such as the black plastic.
The lightweight compostable shopping bags, which can be used for shopping and reused for organic waste, will be delivered to approximately 1400 Co-op stores, initially in large urban centers and to follow in small cities and countries where the bags are allowed for the collection of food waste.