Love your chips and mayo but not your reliance on single-use materials? Good news: Hellmann’s mayonnaise owner Unilever is rolling out a trial of reusable and refillable glass jars.
The consumer goods giant is joining forces with a host of other household names – including Tesco, Nestle, P&G, and PepsiCo – to launch a service called ‘Loop’ that aims to cut back on plastic.
The trial is launching in New York and Paris this spring – and hopefully in the UK by the end of this year. Shoppers will be able to buy goods from these companies on Loop, and they’ll be delivered in reusable packaging.
Once you’re done with them, you can arrange for the packaging to be collected within 48 hours, where it will be washed for you, refilled, and returned.
The concept is interesting, but not without its challenges. Will this really be a more eco-friendly way to shop? Won’t the deliveries just rack up lots of road miles and add to our carbon footprint?
Unilever said in the long run, this reuse and recycle model could cut its impact on the environment, but at the same time admitted you’d need to reuse a jar five times to get a benefit.
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The company is using this trial to work out how to make its products more environmentally friendly and understand what works for shoppers.
“We want to put an end to the current ‘take-make-dispose’ culture and are committed to taking big steps towards designing our products for re-use,” said Alan Jope, CEO of Unilever. “We’re proud to be a founding partner of Loop, which will deliver our much-loved brands in packaging which is truly circular by design.”