Smarter packaging
We are fully committed to the transition to a circular economy through smarter packaging. Today, almost all our own-brand packaging is already recyclable or reusable. Our ambition is clear: every day, we choose renewable and recycled materials and ensure our packaging is as reusable or recyclable as possible.
What are our ambitions regarding smarter packaging?
We have already taken significant steps. For example, 99.8%of our packaging is already recyclable. We are building on this, with further ambitions to make packaging ever smarter and more circular.
- Greater use of sustainably produced, renewable and recycled raw materials
- Greater commitment: we are simultaneously implementing the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
- Greater transparency through close collaboration with our own-brand suppliers to ensure better and more consistent packaging data.
Why do we want to package as smartly as possible?
Packaging is essential for our customers: it protects the product, extends its shelf life and contains legally required information. At the same time, packaging has a clear environmental impact, particularly for us as a major retailer. That’s why we always consider the product and the packaging together, to achieve the best possible combination.
- Priority for fresh food: for products with a short shelf life, we prioritise packaging that helps prevent food waste. After all, food waste has a greater environmental impact than the packaging itself.
- Eco-design for long-shelf-life products: for products with a longer shelf life and for transport packaging, the focus is on the principles of the circular economy: refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink.
How do we ensure we package as smartly as possible?
The most sustainable packaging is the packaging that doesn’t exist. Where possible, we eliminate packaging entirely, for example by offering fruit and vegetables in bulk.
If packaging is necessary for freshness or protection, we try to keep it to a minimum. We reduce material use without compromising on quality or food safety.
We encourage customers to choose reuse over single-use options, such as reusable bags for fruit and vegetables. The result: 150 million fewer plastic bags on the planet every year.
We give preference to packaging made entirely from a single type of material—the most easily recyclable material. Where this is not possible, we opt for materials that customers can easily separate. We increasingly choose packaging made from recycled or renewable materials.
Together with producers, research institutes and universities, Colruyt Group is collaborating on research projects for new, innovative storage technologies and packaging that extend the shelf life of fruit and vegetables.
As a retailer, we do our utmost to choose the best possible packaging for every product. We inform and encourage our customers to sort their waste correctly, so that used packaging can be effectively recycled and given a new lease of life.
Where do we stand today?
Preventing food loss and waste also contributes to greater circularity
Today, we sell more than 97% of our fresh food, thanks to well-thought-out stock management and optimal storage. This is good for the environment and for our operations. In line with the principles of the circular economy, whatever remains is repurposed to the highest possible standard, for human or animal consumption.
