Iceland to trial new paper carrier bag in Northwich store

The food shop has launched an industry leading trial, removing plastic bags altogether from one of its stores in Hackney, in the fight against plastic.

The trial will run in Iceland’s Hackney store, with plastic bags being removed entirely and customers being offered extra-strong paper bags for 15p.

But the store is set to extend the trial to north Wales and Cheshire, including the Northwich store in Witton Street.

The bags can hold up to 16kg – the equivalent of 70 packs of Iceland’s No Bull Burgers (226g per pack).

Based on current usage and estimated switching rates for the side by side trial, it is anticipated that the trials will collectively save over 210,000 plastic carrier bags from being newly purchased.

Both trials will run for six months, with the findings to be analysed throughout and used to inform Iceland’s long-term approach to replacing single use plastic carriers. The retailer removed plastic single-use carrier bags from all stores in 2018 and is working to explore non-plastic alternatives which meet the needs of customers and will support in challenging consumer behaviour.

Last year, Iceland was the first retailer globally to commit to remove all plastic from its own-label packaging by the end of 2023.

Richard Walker, managing director at Iceland, said: “We know that many customers are using ‘bags for life’ only once and the retail industry needs to work together to challenge this behaviour and find alternative solutions. Over 1.2 billion plastic bags for life were sold last year in the UK and this needs to change drastically.

“These trials will help us to understand how our customers feel about removing one of the most common objects associated with plastic, the supermarket carrier bag, and how they respond to various alternatives. We’re looking forward to seeing how customers respond and using the results of the trials in our wider plans to reduce our plastic footprint.”