450 fewer tonnes of plastic in SPAR stores

From August, only biodegradable bags will be available in the fruit and vegetable sections of SPAR and INTERSPAR stores  throughout the country, with the traditional single-use plastic bags phased out of the shops for good.

In nine SPAR stores and one INTERSPAR store in Tatabánya, the new biodegradable bags, which are primarily used for packaging fruit and vegetables, have been tested for four weeks from 4 April 2022. Customers were also offered the opportunity to buy fruit and vegetables using their own bags or even without packaging.

“The successful four-week trial run in Tatabánya proved that our customers also support the Group’s green philosophy and join our sustainability initiatives, for example by using environmentally-friendly packaging materials or buying fruit and vegetables without packaging. Thus, from 1 August 2022, we will switch to biodegradable, reusable bags, which can be purchased for a symbolic amount of 15 HUF in all our fruit and vegetable departments at all SPAR stores nationwide. When paying at the self-checkout, customers will be able to select whether they are using a bag bought in-store or brought from home,” said Márk Maczelka, head of communications. He added: it is worth noting that customers used an average of 250 million pieces of the previous standard 7-micron rollbags in SPAR stores every year, which together weighed 450 tonnes, so the change will reduce the amount of plastic used by that much.

The new material is more flexible, making it more resistant to heavier loads. Unlike the traditional version, the new product is biodegradable and can even be composted at home, so it can be disposed of in a compost or in municipal waste bins after use. The new bags are more absorbent than the conventional ones and are not recommended for home storage of bakery products, as they dry out food more quickly.

In the bakery sections, paper-based packaging has already replaced the former plastic bags. Not only does this reduce the amount of plastic used in food packaging, but the reusable containers offered in the stores of the retail chain also help us to be more environmentally conscious.

In addition to the above, from 1 July 2021, SPAR has no longer sold disposable plastic products such as single-use plastic plates, cups, cutlery and straws. These have been replaced by reusable, dishwasher-safe or paper items.

Images attached to the press release are available in SPAR Médiatár, at the address http://mediatar.spar.hu/. The interface also enables downloading additional public images from SPAR. When using the images, please credit the photos to “spar.hu”.

For more information please contact:

Márk Maczelka, head of communications

SPAR Magyarország Kereskedelmi Kft. ∙ 2060, Bicske, SPAR út

Mobile: +36 20 823 7891 ∙ E-mail: maczelka.mark@spar.hu