The removal of plastic openings for some Coles Brand tissue boxes is the supermarket’s latest move to reduce unnecessary and problematic plastic packaging from its shelves.
According to Coles, the packaging change will remove 13 tonnes of plastic from circulation in one year and includes the following products: Coles Facial Tissues Aloe Vera 95 pack, Coles Facial Tissues Eucalyptus 95 pack, and Coles Facial Tissues White 224 and 90 packs.
Coles sells other products that have a plastic-free opening including Sorbent hypo-allergenic white facial tissues 200 pack and Sorbent facial tissues everyday 150 pack.
The newly designed boxes, made from 95 per cent recycled material, underwent vigorous testing to ensure the high standard of performance was maintained, Coles says, and have a tissue elevator and smaller opening size for ease of use.
Coles told PKN the opening of the previous box was larger in dimension and that the removeable cardboard flap remains in place to prevent contamination of the tissues during transit or storage.
Charlotte Rhodes, Coles’ general manager of Own Brand Quality and Responsible Sourcing, says Coles is always looking for ways to reduce unnecessary and problematic plastic packaging as the retailer works towards achieving its target of 100 per cent reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging by 2025.
“Today’s announcement that Coles has removed the plastic opening from its key Coles Own Brand Tissue products demonstrates our commitment to reduce unnecessary and problematic plastic packaging in our stores,” she said.
“This small but significant change will remove 13 tonnes of plastic from circulation in one year, which is the equivalent of 412,000 plastic bags.
“Our customers want to see change when it comes to plastic packaging, and this is one way of giving customers a choice to be part of the solution.”
Earlier this month, Coles announced it will stop selling soft-plastic shopping bags in all stores and online by June, a move that will remove 230 million plastic bags from circulation.
While customers are encouraged to bring a bag to store, those who forget can purchase a 100 per cent recycled paper bag that can be recycled kerbside.
Other initiatives to reduce unnecessary and problematic plastic packaging include removing plastic measuring scoops from Coles Brand and Coles Ultra laundry powders, thus removing three tonnes of plastic in a year; removing 41 tonnes of plastic from the Organic range; and replacing plastic bread tags with cardboard alternatives, which diverted 79 tonnes of polystyrene plastic from landfill each year.
Coles is a signatory to the Australian Packaging Covenant and a member of the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), tasked with delivering Australia’s 2025 National Packaging Targets.
Coles is also a founding member of the Australian, New Zealand and Pacific Islands (ANZPAC) Plastics Pact, and is working alongside government and other major supermarkets to develop a solution to soft plastic recycling as part of the Soft Plastic Taskforce.
