Sainsbury's switches to cardboard trays for own-brand chicken and fish

Sainsbury’s is implementing several packaging changes across its own-brand chicken and fish lines, which will save 694 tonnes of plastic annually.

All own-brand salmon fillet trays will now use pulp cardboard instead of plastic, a first for a UK retailer. This change will reduce plastic use by 70%, saving 346 tonnes of plastic per year.

Additionally, Sainsbury’s is introducing cardboard trays for its Taste the Difference and by Sainsbury's breaded chicken lines, expected to save 300 tonnes of plastic annually. Similar changes are being made to the Taste the Difference breaded fish fillets, which will save 48 tonnes of plastic each year.

The new packaging will be rolled out over the summer across many seasonal chicken products, including finger food and BBQ ranges. This more sustainable packaging will be used for breaded goujons, nuggets, schnitzels, and more.

Claire Hughes, Director of Product and Innovation at Sainsbury’s, said: With salmon being one of our most popular fish, we made it a priority to reduce the plastic on the packaging of this much loved product as we work towards our Plan for Better goals. We are now the first retailer to make the move to have recycled pulp card trays across all our bySainsbury’s and Taste the Difference salmon products, enabling a whopping 70% plastic reduction. Together with changes to our breaded fish and chicken packaging, we are set to save 694 tonnes of plastic a year – a significant step towards our plastic reduction goals.

The pulp cardboard trays for salmon and the cardboard trays for breaded chicken and fish are easily recyclable, allowing customers to reduce household waste by recycling the packaging in kerbside bins.