As consumers become more aware of their footprint, retailers have made efforts to offer more options to their customers. From packaging reduction to refill systems, many initiatives have been reported around the world.
In the past few days, another of these trials has been announced, with Ocado and the UK Refill Alliance teaming up to offer refill options in e-commerce. In practice, the system will work with the delivery of a full container, which can then be returned to the driver during the next delivery.
 
The first phase of the pilot, developed for grocery and apparel care products, will begin in August and will cover products such as basmati rice okado 2 kg and penne 1 kg. A second phase, due in late 2004, will include detergents with a private label detergent (Ocado Reuse Non-Bio-Liquid Detergent 3L) and a softener (Ocado Reuse Skyes Fabric Conditioner 3L).
But why start this venture? Now, according to calculations by the two companies mentioned above, if every household in the UK chose to reuse one item a week, it would eliminate more than 1.4 billion single-use packaging items per year.
 
Simon Hincks, Product Director at Ocado RetailAbout the initiative, he said, “I am proud to be the first major supermarket to pilot a reusable packaging program online. Most people understand the concept and know it works in a physical store, but this trial brings the solution directly to customers’ doorsteps.
“Our customers are already used to returning their bags to our drivers for recycling, so this is a very sensible next step in helping our customers reduce single-use plastic in the items they buy most often,” said Hincks.
 
GoUnpackaged, the UK refill specialist that joined the alliance in 2020, will manage laundry and logistics for Ocado Retail for this part of the trial.
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