Caroline Miller, CR Governance Manager at Sainsbury's outlines some of the environmental initiatives being undertaking at the company.

REUSABLE BAGS:

We introduced reusable bags in the early 1990s.  Our 100% recycled ‘Bags for Life’ cost 10 pence.  Used on average 20 times, they are replaced for free when they wear out.  Furthermore, the proceeds from Bag for Life sales are reinvested directly into local community projects.

GREEN GENERATION BAGS:

In September 2006, we pioneered the first free ‘green carrier bag’.  Made from 1/3 recycled material, the bags include 10% chalk, reducing the raw plastic used by 43%.  We are the only major retailer to offer such a bag.

CHOICE:

We constantly renew the range of reusable bags we offer.  We sell over 15,000 fold-a-shoppers every week. Our organic jute bags proved so popular that we quickly sold out after launching. 

DESIGNER BAGS:

In February 2007, we partnered with top designer, Anya Hindmarch, and campaigning group, We Are What We Do, to launch our exclusive ‘I’m not a plastic bag’ bags.

The bags retailed at £5 and sold out within an hour.  The event was an overwhelming success, raising awareness of the issue to unprecedented levels.

‘MAKE THE DIFFERENCE’ DAYS:

Our first ‘Make The Difference’ day focused on reducing bag usage.  On the day, we removed disposable bags and gave out free Bags for Life as a reusable alternative. The reception was so good, we repeated the exercise. 

We have now given out over 10 million free Bags for Life and have seen the use of free disposable bags fall by 10% in the last six months compared to last year as a direct result.  In this time, the use of re-usable bags has soared by nearly 50%. The 10% decrease equates to a saving of 85 million free disposable bags, preventing 750 tonnes of bags from going to landfill.