including refill on the go, refill at home, return on the go and return from home. RETAILERS ASWASTE PROCESSORS In the absence of kerbside collection systems for certain packaging, such as flexible packaging, some retailers have promoted alternative return schemes for customers in their stores, although on a relatively small scale. More retailers are introducing reuse and refill systems and packaging return outlets. In our interviews, the procurement manager of a leading food retailer said: “I don’t think we [consumers] do a good enough job [recycling], which is why I think... the Tescos of this world then have to step in and say, ‘okay, we’re going to help you. We’re going to make this easy for you. We will put a collection point in our stores every time you shop with us, please bring your soft plastics back with you and we will take it off your hands and we will do something positive with it’.” Recently, WRAP announced the nationwide in-store collection of flexible packaging will be made more prominent and consistent. The UK Government also expects to set higher recycling targets for producers, as well as for initiatives that go beyond recycling and support the circular economy, such as promoting re-use and refill. The imminent packaging tax is already having a cascading effect on different packaging materials, making retailers proactive. Since there is an increasing shortageof plastic for packaging with recycled content, and the prices of those materials are skyrocketing, retailers have taken charge. For example, some have already started investing in recycling plants to help themrecycle soft plastics like crisp packets and chocolate wrappers, which cannot be currently recycled in theUKdue to a lack of infrastructure. Additionally, thismay help retailers produce packaging tomeet their own demands and avoid competing to source thematerials. In that sense, plasticwaste has become a valuable commodity, and it leads us to conclude that retailers are on the path to becoming the new-age plasticwaste processors. NEXT STEPS... Retailers have come a long way, but there is more progress to be made. To engage more consumers and help them adapt to the ongoing changes, retailers not only need to provide easy solutions, but solutions that sustain long-term behaviour change. In the grander scheme of things, it may require retailers to follow a network approach to develop a nationwide system that offers consumers the flexibility to buy in different packaging formats and return packaging to convenient locations, both in-store and online, across multiple retailers irrespective of where they buy from. Retailers will benefit from collaborating to make such an operation commercially viable. Most importantly, retailers have an edge in trying to create a mass behaviour shift as they are capable of offering convenience to consumers by making facilities and processes more accessible. Further, it is important for retailers to develop interventions keeping consumer convenience in mind to avoid unintended consequences that may do more harm than good. For example, consumers driving more miles to find a store that sells in refillable packaging or accepts their used flexible packaging to be recycled. So, if a consumer today might say retailers are responsible for reducing, collecting and recovering plastic packaging, our evidence shows they are making strides in doing just that. Dr Savita Verma is a Research Associate in theDepartment of Management Scienceworking on the Plastic Packaging in People’s Lives project. Her research focuses on how individuals perceive sustainability and howattitudes affect theirmotivation and behaviours, such as green and pro-environmental behaviour. savita.verma@lancaster.ac.uk Professor LindaHendry is Head of theDepartment of Management Science, and a Professor of OperationsManagement. Hermain ongoing research interest is in Sustainable Supply Chain Management. l.hendry@lancaster.ac.uk FIFTY FOUR DEGREES | 21
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