GUD Press Release

News Release [Immediate Release]

Eco Activists Call on Retailers to Drop Waste Packaging

Shoppers across the world will strip their purchases of all unnecessary and excessive product packaging and return it en masse to retail store managers on 1 December 2007 as part of Global Unpackage Day.

The purpose of Global Unpackage Day is to highlight the vast quantities of superfluous packaging that comes with so many of the goods people buy everyday. The aim is to encourage manufacturers and retailers to take serious steps to reduce packaging used and ensure that any required packaging can be recycled easily and at no cost to consumers.

A huge amount of household waste comprises unwanted retail packaging and much of it is simply unnecessary in the first place. Consider all the plastic that wraps fruit and vegetables that have no need of it… Think about the untold quantities of cardboard that surround the TV dinners and TV sets already wrapped in plastic or foam… There are myriads of other everyday mundane items that are also packaged equally unsustainably.

As well as passing the cost of unwarranted extra packaging on to consumers by the prices charged for goods purchased, manufacturers and retailers are also unwittingly passing on the cost of disposal of the packaging to householders who are charged for the waste recycling and disposal services they receive. Packaging that can not be recycled by householders also adds to landfill problems.

In many instances manufacturers and retailers are just unaware of the problems that excessive packaging causes to the environment. An important goal of Global Unpackage Day is to help educate manufacturers and retailers about these issues so that they can adopt sustainable approaches to minimize the packaging that surrounds their products. Where packaging is necessary, manufacturers and retailers will be urged to make every effort to ensure that it is biodegradable, compostable or recyclable.

Another key priority of Global Unpackage Day is to encourage retail outlets to offer shoppers the opportunity to return product packaging to the stores from which the goods were purchased.

Should packaging return counters become universal at retail stores, the costs of product packaging recycling and disposal to consumers will fall, excessive packaging designs will be phased out, packaging going to landfill will be reduced and packaging recycling rates will increase. Retailers will also benefit by being able to develop packaging return customer loyalty schemes.

Gavin McGarry, spokesperson for Global Unpackage Day, explained: “By participating in Global Unpackage Day, consumers can demonstrate that they feel strongly about the amount of excessive and unnecessary product packaging in our shops today.

“We want shoppers to take their unwanted retail packaging to store managers on 1st December to encourage individual stores to consider ways to reduce product packaging.

“If enough stores appreciate shopper concerns and start to work alongside their customers in this manner, it will only be a matter of time before packaging policy becomes more sustainable across the whole of the retail sector. Retail outlets and consumers can work together to bring about real change.

“By supporting Global Unpackage Day, retailers and shoppers can do something really worthwhile for the environment.”

More information about Global Unpackage Day is available at www.globalunpackageday.blogspot.com

Notes to Editors

Global Unpackage Day takes place annually on 1st December.

Global Unpackage Day seeks to help minimize the global impact of retail product packaging by promoting the use of sustainable packaging materials; supporting the eradication of excessive retail packaging; and encouraging the introduction of package recycling points within retail outlets.