Food manufacturing giant 2 Sisters has vowed to make 90 per cent of all the plastics in its branded food product packaging recyclable by 2020. The group has pledged to make massive reductions in its plastic packaging and to phase out the use of un-recyclable bottles and cups at all of its production sites in the UK by the end of 2018.

The group has 36 sites in the UK, producing red meat, poultry, chilled and frozen food, as well as big brand products such as Fox’s Biscuits for customers including Aldi, Asda, Marks and Spencers, Sainsburys, Tesco, Morrisons, Lidl, KFC, Co-Op and Waitrose.

2 Sisters plans to work with its suppliers and retailers to increase packaging recycling and it has pledged to report publicly on the progress of its recycling strategy in 12 months.

Not only is 2 Sisters making this recycling pledge but it has also joined a group of 25 organisations – called Champions 12.3 – to cut down on food waste. The group, made up of executives and chaired by Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis, is tasked with the target of halving food waste by 2030.

President of Boparan Holdings – the holding company for 2 Sisters Food Group – Ranjit Singh said: “We believe there is a global responsibility to ensure that food suitable for human consumption is kept within the supply chain. With 8.4m people in the UK struggling to put enough food on the table it is not acceptable that food is going to waste.

“At 2 Sisters we recognise there is not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to tackling this issue and we’ll therefore continue to look at a number of different initiatives across our operations to find opportunities for positive change.”

Mr Singh recognises that over the last few years plastic packaging has played a critical role in reducing food waste and extending the shelf life of food products but he believes that the environmental impact of this material must be addressed by all.

He said: “We need a culture change to make the biggest difference – both in the way we use plastics for our products and how we use plastics in our everyday lives.”

It is for this reason that 2 Sisters is committed to achieve the targets it has set for recyclable packaging over the next two years.

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