Sainsbury’s packs for the compost

Sainsbury’s is launching what it claims to be the UK’s first biodegradable supermarket packaging, for its own-label organic range of fruit and vegetables at the end of January.

The packaging is based on technology that has taken eight years to perfect. It has been developed by manufacturer Apack and has been adapted by the retailer’s in-house design team.

Each tray is made from dried, baked potato starch, lined with a polyester plastic laminate and a coating-free label, both of which are biodegradable. The packaging should decompose in about 14 days. Consumers are advised to dispose of trays on compost heaps, but they will also decompose in confined spaces, such as window boxes.

Sainsbury’s in-house team changed the colour of the tray from light green to dark blue to match the supermarket’s corporate blue and its organic branding.

According to a spokesman, there has been little change to the design of the food tray. The new packs launch across Sainsbury’s 437 stores at the end of January.