MORRISONS has announced plans to launch six zero-waste stores that aim to recycle all packaging and unsold food by 2025.
The six Edinburgh stores will introduce recycling points for customers for hard-to-recycle items including wrappers, crisp packets and face masks.
If the trial is successful, the format will be rolled out to Morrisons' 498 UK supermarkets.
The trial is being carried out in partnership with Nestlé, which will recycle soft plastics for the first time in the UK without shipping waste to other countries for processing.
Store waste will be sorted by Morrisons staff in storage rooms, including hard and soft plastics, cardboard, food waste, green waste, PPE, tins, cans and foils.
The supermarket will offer unsold goods through its Too Good To Go app, where customers will be able to find heavily discounted food, and it will make additional efforts to distribute the food to local communities.
Jamie Winter, sustainability procurement director at Morrisons, said: "We believe that we can, at a stroke, enable these trial stores to move from recycling around 27% of their general waste to over 84%, and with a clear line of sight to 100%.
"All waste collected in our stores will be recycled here in the UK – we will not reprocess anything abroad. If we’re successful, we’ll roll this zero-waste store concept out across the UK as fast as we can."
The store has encouraged big-name brands to reduce their packaging, and Morrisons said it was the first supermarket to introduce paper bags instead of plastic ones.
With the trial taking place in Scotland, Somerset’s Morrisons stores will not be zero-waste for the foreseeable future– but there are some great independent stores offering greener food and grocery shopping options.
Here are some of our favourites...
The Blue Pantry, Fore Street, Wellington
Wellington's Blue Pantry opened in September 2018 after its owners, Kate and Gary Todd, were inspired by a similar store elsewhere in the country.
The 'fill-your-own' grocery shop encourages a zero-waste lifestyle by reducing single-use plastic packaging and giving people a choice about the way they shop.
The shop features dry goods such as nuts, pastas, herbs, spices and flours, dairy products like milk and eggs, and other useful options including washing-up liquid.
When the shop opened, Kate said: "We want to be quite open and transparent. We aren’t saying there is no waste, but we are making it a lot more self-contained.
"People should come and have a look. It might not be what you expect."
In 2019, The Blue Pantry won the Somerset Life Food and Drink Newcomer Award.
Customers can bring their own clean, suitable containers to the shop or buy reusable bags, bottles and jars there.
For more information on how to buy from The Blue Pantry and to learn more about the shop, visit its website.
Lesser Litter, Paul Street, Taunton
All items on offer at Lesser Litter, which opened in July 2018, are free from plastic, palm oil, air miles and cruelty.
Everything on offer is vegan except their sustainably and responsibly sourced honey, beeswax wraps and sunscreen.
Cleaning products and toiletries, obtained from ethical companies, are also available as refills.
Lesser Litter offers a container drop-off service, pre-orders to collect and in-store service.
Kate Robertson, who opened the store with Pete Hope, said in 2018: "We have only just opened and it's so nice to see people coming in and having a look around.
"We have had a lot of interest in the store, it's something that people in Taunton will use.
"We are excited for the future."
To see the product and price list or to learn more, visit Lesser Litter's website.
Take No Wrap, Ivel Square, Yeovil
Yeovil's first zero-waste shop, Take No Wrap, offers "a wide range of dried foods, such as pasta, fruit and snacks, plastic-free toiletries, and eco-friendly alternatives to disposable products".
It stocks brands including Friendly Soap, Silverthorne Farm, 918 Coffee Co, The Bottled Baking Co, Sesi Refill and more.
Other selling points include its 'Rent-a-Party' packs, enabling people to throw eco-friendly, zero-waste parties.
For more information about shopping at Take No Wrap and its services, visit its website.
A Better Weigh, Old Street, Clevedon
A Better Weigh describes itself as "a minimal waste shop selling dried food and household goods all without packaging", and it encourages customers "to bring your own containers to refill with as much or little as you like".
Clevedon's refill shop stocks sweet treats, savoury snacks, nuts and seeds, dried fruit, flour and grains, rice, pasta, cereal, and much more.
New additions include advent calendars filled with handmade, vegan and gluten-free chocolates and truffles and pies from Bristol-based company Pieminister.
Learn more about A Better Weigh HERE.
Bruton Wholefoods, High Street, Bruton
Bruton Wholefood specialises in "supplying organic produce, including wholefoods, vegetables, fruit, dairy and baked goods as well as household cleaning products, toiletries, and greetings cards".
It offers fairtrade, ethically sourced goods where possible and has an extensive 'free-from' range.
The fruit, vegetables and some of the other items on offer come from local smallholders and producers.
The shop is run by friendly members of staff and volunteers, and it offers a click-and-collect service.
To see a virtual stocklist and to learn more about Bruton Wholefoods, visit its website.
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