Jo Swinson has criticised a lack of transparency in a key Government target on excess packaging reduction, early results of which were announced today.
Under the first stage of the Courtauld Commitment on packaging reduction, producers representing 90% of the UK grocery sector agreed to design out packaging waste growth by 2008.
Commenting on the first stage results announced today, Jo said:
“Today’s announcement indicates that packaging in the grocery sector has now reached a plateau, though not an actual reduction as yet.
“Announcing a single target across the grocery sector as a whole, rather than showing what individual producers have achieved, is unhelpful in terms of transparency. Consumers should be allowed to know which companies are taking a lead and which are lagging behind. Those who are dragging their heels on packaging reduction are effectively riding the coat tails of those who are setting the pace.
“Many of the companies that signed up to the Courtauld Commitment also set their own targets on packaging reduction, some of which are due to be completed this year. Cutting excess packaging must be an ongoing process, not a one-off effort, so I am disappointed not to hear more today about what DEFRA is doing to broker further reduction targets with producers.”
The Courtauld Commitment is a voluntary agreement between WRAP and major UK grocery organisations that supports less packaging and food waste ending up in household bins. The agreement asks for signatories to support WRAP in the achievements of its objectives:
• To design out packaging waste growth by 2008.
• To deliver absolute reductions in packaging waste by 2010.
• To identify ways to tackle the problem of food waste.
Jo Swinson has backed a group promoting home-made reusable shopping bags.
Morsbags is part of a global network, founded in January this year by Claire Morsman, which provides people with instructions to help them make and distribute re-usable shopping bags. Jo joined representatives from Morsbags at a recent event in the House of Commons.Commenting, Jo said:“Making Morsbags is a really fun way to help improve the world in which we live, and its something that everyone can get involved with. The idea of Morsbags is to get together with people in your local community and make reusable cloth bags – something I think people in East Dunbartonshire can really get involved in”“Morsbags are a new, sociable and sustainable way to challenge the problem of plastic bag waste. Making sure we remember to carry re-usable shopping bags with us is a simple step that can have a significant positive impact on the environment.”Globally, over one million plastic carrier bags are consumed every minute, and it is estimated that the average person in the UK uses over 300 per year.So far Morsbags have made over 21,300 bags out of reusable cloth such old duvet covers and curtains. That potentially replaces over 10.5 million plastic carriers. The bags are locally sourced and made by scouts, school children, pensioners, youth groups and many more. Over 560 groups worldwide are involved with Morsbags and the number is continuing to grow each week.
A considerable amount of today’s Commons debate on supermarkets was spent discussing excess packaging. Jo Swinson made a telling contribution, pressing the Minister Joan Ruddock on the flaws in the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2003. These regulations govern what constitutes acceptable levels of packaging, but Trading Standards officers have described them as “difficult to enforce” and having “little real impact” on reducing packaging.
The Minister made some important concessions in her response to Jo Swinson’s speech, stating: “The hon. Member for East Dunbartonshire (Jo Swinson) raised questions about the packaging regulations. We agree with her. The essential requirements do not work. We have asked for a review, but progress is slow.”
Jo Swinson was due to meet Joan Ruddock today to discuss these issues, but as a result of the debate in Parliament, ended up questioning her across the floor of the House instead. That meeting has been rescheduled and will take place in 2-3 weeks.
There has been a lot of activity in the past few days with several papers and blogs commenting on the campaign to reduce excess packaging. The Daily Mail reports on how your easter treats come in at 8,000 tons of waste packaging, whilst Recycling and Waste World report on how there is a packaging ‘arms race’. Local media and blogs across the country are picking up on the story, for example a report on ‘EGG-cess packaging‘ in the Hucknall Dispatch, and ‘Easter-egg firms slammed‘ by the blog Green Bang.
Jo Swinson MP has reported producers of two Easter eggs to Trading Standards officers for breaching packaging regulations.
The Easter eggs, made by Lindt and Nestle, came out worst in a survey of Easter egg packaging carried out by the East Dunbartonshire MP.
Jo Swinson said:
“These Easter eggs epitomise why consumers are so frustrated with over-packaged goods, especially at Easter. The eggs take up just 9% of the volume of the packaging, and the Nestle egg has actually increased the amount of packaging used compared to a survey I carried out last year.
“There are clear legal requirements placed on packaging, and these eggs certainly go beyond what is necessary to protect the product. You just have to look at the bewildering array of Easter eggs on offer to see that producers are locked into a packaging ‘arms race’, competing for space on the supermarket shelf with bigger and more attention-grabbing products.”
“The Government must take the initiative and force supermarkets and producers to stop this wasteful, unnecessary use of resources.”
Jo Swinson MP comments in a feature in the Independent today, East egg makers fail to cut packaging. The article compares the commitment of several companies to reduce their Easter egg packaging, and what has actually taken place this year. Jo Swinson comments:
“Despite packaging being much more in the spotlight, Easter egg manufacturers are not taking the steps needed.”