According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, global food retail sales add up to a whopping $4 trillion annually.
A lot of those products come in plastic which keeps our food from spoiling -- but spoils the planet at the same time. Supermarkets are responsible for 40% of the plastic packaging we use, and because of that huge number, they must start taking responsibility for the plastic products they put out on their shelves and which subsequently end up in our landfills, city streets and oceans.
One supermarket is taking on that challenge.
The Dutch grocery store chain Ekoplaza has opened the world's first plastic-free aisle in one of its Amsterdam stores. The aisle will have more than 700 products; from meat, and grains to sauces, candies and fresh produce — all wrapped in compostable, biodegradable materials. Ekoplaza has even committed to bringing the plastic-free aisle to the rest of their stores by the end of the year.
Kroger is the world's largest grocery store chain. The company brings in over 120 billion dollars a year and has more than 2,300 branches throughout the United States. That is a whole lot of plastic! While Ekoplaza is showing the Dutch that they can live without plastic in Europe,
Care2 is calling on Kroger to show American consumers the same here. Imagine how much of a difference Kroger could make if they opened a plastic-free aisle in all of their stores.
This would not only reduce waste, but it would encourage companies to think of other — more environmentally sound — ways to package their foods. Please join us in asking Kroger to take a stand against plastic. Sign the petition and tell them to commit to opening plastic free aisles in all of their stores.