On Monday 24 June MPs will debate a petition urging the Government to ban the use of all non-recyclable and unsustainable food packaging.
Daniel Zeichner MP, a member of the Petitions Committee, will open the debate.
The Committee heard from almost 20,000 people about their experience of plastic packaging.
Despite an overwhelming majority saying that they would choose to buy basic groceries without plastic packaging, very few people claimed they were able to do so at their local shops.
A total of 94% of people said that they wanted to buy grapes without plastic, but only 9% were able to, 95% said that they would choose to buy breakfast cereal without plastic packaging but only 12% were able to, 95% of people surveyed told the Committee they would choose to use refillable containers to buy products like rice, pasta and milk, if they were given the option and 78% said that they supported a ban on all plastic food packaging.
Yet so much food packaging remains completely, frustratingly unrecyclable. Let’s aim for the UK to lead the world with a 100% recycling rate
The petition, which has more than 247,000 signatures, states: “Today the Earth is at a crisis point due to our plastic consumption, and as a result, people in the UK are more willing than ever to engage in recycling.
“Yet so much food packaging remains completely, frustratingly unrecyclable. Let’s aim for the UK to lead the world with a 100% recycling rate.”
The petitioner adds: “Every day we send to landfill, to decompose over thousands of years: cereal box inner bags, peel-off film, almost all plastic supermarket fruit and veg packets, crisp packets, sweets wrappers, chocolate bar wrappers, Styrofoam, and vacuum pack plastic to name a few.
“The British public wants to recycle but we can’t get away from the vast amounts of waste that poorly designed packaging creates.”
In response to the petition, the Government said: “Our Strategy [Resources and waste strategy] sets out plans to eliminate avoidable plastic waste. We have consulted on proposals to incentivise producers to make more sustainable packaging design choices and recyclable packaging.
“Most food packaging is technically recyclable, though the current market does not make all recycling economically viable.”
Monday’s debate will provide an opportunity for MPs to question a Government Minister directly on this topic.
“We have woken up” [UPDATED 25 June]
Labour would be “much more interventionist”, said Daniel Zeichner said during the debate, following government saying it has “no plans” to ban the use of food packaging that cannot be recycled.
Opening the debate, Mr Zeichner, said: “Today the Earth is at a crisis point due to our plastic consumption, and as a result, people in the UK are more willing than ever to engage in recycling.
“So much food packaging remains completely, frustratingly unrecyclable. Let’s aim for the UK to lead the world with a 100% recycling rate.”
He went on to say: “We have woken up. There is genuine public recognition of the climate crisis and real concern over the natural destruction caused by non-recyclable waste.
There is genuine public recognition of the climate crisis and real concern over the natural destruction caused by non-recyclable waste
“Buying food without throwaway packaging is becoming increasingly popular,” he said.
Robert Goodwill, minister for agriculture, fisheries and food, said the government had been consulting on proposals to incentivise producers to make more sustainable packaging design choices.
He said: “The government shares the public’s concerns and has set out ambitious plans to tackle the problem… I should stress we have no plans to ban the use of food packaging that cannot be recycled.
“Most food packaging is technically recyclable, though the current market does not make all recycling economically viable.
“Our general approach is to help people and companies make the right choice and develop alternatives, rather than move to banning items outright.”
He said “consumer-driven progress” was an important factor too, saying there have been instances – as with plastic straws and microbeads – where a “wholesale ban was appropriate”.
