Kingsmill has unveiled a bread bag featuring 30% recycled content, which the brand claims is a first for UK bread aisles.
The new Kingsmill 50/50 No Crusts bag will be trialled in supermarkets nationwide over the next 12 months. According to parent company Allied Bakeries, the SKU accounts for the sale of 2.5m loaves each year. It calculates that the equivalent plastic of 750,000 bags will be removed from Kingsmill’s supply chain during the trial.
The bags, produced by St Johns Packaging, are made using a technology called advanced recycling, which upcycles used and mixed plastic. Kingsmill claims to be the first brand to pilot the technology within UK bread and bakery.
The launch of the trial is part of Kingsmill’s Slice of Kindness Pledge, which it describes as a ‘manifesto’ of commitments around health, sustainability, and communities, aiming to ‘create lasting change in 2021 and beyond’.
“Trialling quantities of recycled content across our 50/50 No Crusts loaf is a major milestone in this journey,” said Chris Craig, Kingsmill’s joint managing director. “To roll the trial out on a permanent basis as we hope, we need more soft plastic to be recycled, which means recyclers need to build up their capacity and infrastructure to meet demand.”
Alongside recycled content packaging, Kingsmill is championing kerbside collections for bread bags and other soft plastics sooner than the 2026/27 date currently set out by local councils.
“We want bread bags to be readily recycled as part of a consistent household kerbside collection, and then re-processed into other materials to ensure the bags remain in the recycling loop,” said Craig. “We are calling for all parties, from other bakery brands and our supply chains to wider industry partners and government, to work together in driving positive, lasting change.
“For now, we continue to urge everyone to take their soft plastics to their nearest recycling points at larger supermarkets,” he added.
Kingsmill’s Slice of Kindness pledge also includes initiatives to increase the UK’s fibre intake, a partnership with charity Save The Children to tackle child poverty, and a community fund to support ‘superstars in our neighbourhoods’ and Kingsmill employees who volunteer in areas close to their heart.
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