Telford & Wrekin Council says Tesco and Aldi should 'take more responsibility' for plastic waste

The council says its "Plastic Free Taskforce" has written to national manufacturers and local suppliers to urge them to reduce their reliance on single-use plastics.

The authority names Tesco and Aldi among major plastic polluters in the Telford area, based on evidence gathered during roadside litter pick operations.

Tesco runs a large Tesco Extra store on the Wrekin Retail Park near Wellington, while Aldi recently unveiled plans to open a seventh store in Telford and Wrekin.

"Supported by the council, the taskforce has written directly to major manufacturing companies whose packaging frequently appears in local litter picks including Aldi, Tesco, Coca-Cola and Mars, urging them to take more responsibility for their environmental impact," said a spokesperson for Telford & Wrekin Council. 

"The letters call for bold action, including reducing unnecessary plastic production, redesigning packaging with sustainable materials, and adopting extended producer responsibility policies." 

The council says local manufacturers have also been contacted and are being encouraged to support the efforts of the Telford and Wrekin Plastic Free Taskforce, who are working to gain "Plastic Free" accreditation for the borough.

The "Plastic Free" communities initiative is organised by environmental campaign group Surfers Against Sewage. Penzance was the first town to achieve plastic free status, and was later joined by Alderney, Aberporth, Tynemouth, Perranporth, and Nantwich.

Councillor Carolyn Healy, cabinet member for neighbourhoods, planning and sustainability, said: "Plastic pollution is one of the most pressing environmental issues of our time. I’m proud of the progress being made locally, but we need manufacturers to step up and be part of the solution.

“Not only have we written to national manufacturers to express our concerns and urge them to make changes, but we’re also contacting local manufacturers, through the Plastic Free Taskforce, to find out more about what they’re doing to combat single-use plastic and encourage them to join our campaign for a plastic-free borough."

A spokesperson for Tesco said the company was "working hard to make our packaging recyclable," so that packaging materials used by the company have the best possible chance of being used again. 

“Reuse remains a core part of our 4Rs packaging strategy, to Remove, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle plastic packaging and since 2019, we have removed over 2.5 billion pieces of plastic from our own brand products," said a Tesco spokesperson.

“Alongside nine of the UK largest grocery retailers, we have recently announced a joint statement of intent to explore how reusable packaging could be implemented across our stores and online. This is supported by the UK Government and WRAP [Waste & Resources Action Programme].”

Aldi was also contacted for comment.