Most customers of the Albert Heijn XL on the Argonautenweg in Rotterdam still have to get used to the fact that they use organic basmati rice, superior espresso forte coffee beans, jasmine tea and oat flakes. can tap.
Despite the fact that it is Saturday at the beginning of the afternoon, it is not yet a storm, but there are already some customers who are enthusiastic about getting started.
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Reusable packaging
You can buy both plastic storage cans and bags on the spot, both in two different sizes, which you can put in the dishwasher or in the washing machine. You can then use them multiple times.
A customer says in passing that it will be a challenge for him to bring your own packaging, “otherwise you have to buy jars or bags every time”.
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But it is noticeable that many customers who get their own stuff from the 72 dispensers, containing 68 different products, have brought their own packaging from home.
Pots and cans from home
A couple uses at least ten glass jars for this, of course from Pieter Pot, the company that delivers groceries at home without packaging. They steadily work through their shopping list. They think it is a good initiative that Albert Heijn is coming up with this.
Another customer, Loeke, has read about the Albert Heijn trial in various media. Armed with a supply canister with cats playing on it, she came to the store to tap penne rigate, among other things, but that is not easy.
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The top row of dispensers hangs quite high for people who are not very tall and that is extra annoying because with some dispensers you have to fumble with a lever, because the food does not always come out of the dispensers easily. Still, she is happy with the six-meter wall with dispensers.
Living more consciously
“A super cool initiative”, says independent retail consultant Eelco Hos. “During the corona pandemic, consumers have come to realize that we need to be more aware of our planet, Albert Heijn is now very clearly committed to this,” said Rini Emonds, who is involved in retail at research agency IRI.
He also points to the rapid growth of Pieter Pot, which delivers groceries at home in, among other things, preserving jars.
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25 percent less packaging
“Albert Heijn shows that they are serious when it comes to reducing the amount of packaging materials,” Hos adds. The supermarket chain wants to use 20 million kilos less packaging material by 2025 compared to 2017.
That is a decrease of 25 percent. Due to other measures, consumption is already 9 million kilos lower than five years ago, says spokesman Anushka Aspeslagh.
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“Ultimately, you prefer that customers bring their own packaging, instead of buying a reusable jar or jar in the store, which is the most sustainable,” says Aspeslagh.
‘Forefront’
But it concerns only 70 products that are packaging-free, out of a total of perhaps 22,000, in this large supermarket, Hos nuances. Packaging-free products will be limited to private labels, Emonds expects. “Brand manufacturers will miss the communication possibilities on the packaging.”
Furthermore, you cannot introduce packaging-free everywhere, he thinks. “It should not be a mess and with wine, beer or olive oil, for example, that is a problem,” adds Hos.
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Still, he thinks that Albert Heijn customers may start to recycle more at home as a result of the initiative.
You can also get the products from the dispensers packaged, but customers now have a choice. Hos thinks that packaging-free shopping is not for the average consumer right now. “But just like before with vegetarian and organic food, you have a vanguard and without these kinds of initiatives you won’t get ahead.”
‘The impact of production and transport on the environment is greater’
Sustainability expert Mariska Joustra of Milieu Centraal is positive about the Albert Heijn initiative. “If you buy reusable packaging instead of disposable packaging, it gives consumers a good insight into how things can be done differently,” she says.
But she points out that the impact of packaging is only 10 percent of a product’s total environmental impact. Production and transport account for about 75 percent, so throwing away food also has a very large impact, says Joustra.
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The use of reusable packaging can also lead to consumers becoming more aware of the impact of other aspects of their lives on the environment.
“You have a few people who are ‘very dark green’, but you want a lot of people to embrace all environmentally conscious thinking to some extent. You can also leave the car at home more often or eat meat less often.”
‘Price is important for consumers’
Hos doubts whether the sale of packaging-free products will involve large quantities. About 80 percent of the packaging-free products are organic. Albert Heijn wants the packaging-free products to be no more expensive per kilo than their prepackaged variant. But organic products have the image that they are often more expensive than non-organic ones. “People often look at the price,” says Hos.
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After a quick comparison of a few products, it indeed seems that the packaging-free products are not more expensive and sometimes a bit cheaper than the packaged version.
‘Convenience matters to many consumers’
For most consumers, convenience will be even more important for the time being, Hos thinks. He thinks that for many consumers it is a disadvantage that you have to clean reusable packaging and take it to the store when you go shopping. Hos also expects that packaging-free products have a greater chance of success in certain neighborhoods in Amsterdam, for example, than in smaller places.
Hos thinks that packaging-free products also fit well with some other supermarket chains, such as Ekoplaza and some Jumbo branches. But he sees less chance of success for discounter Dirk and Vomar (a regional supermarket chain, mainly in North Holland).
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Possibly in another 50 stores
Albert Heijn wants to introduce packaging-free shopping in another 50 stores in the coming year, if the trial is successful. This will mainly be in the larger stores, because offering packaging-free products takes up more space than the packaged variant.
The fact that you can pack products yourself is not new in itself. For example, at Jumbo and Vomar you can scoop frozen fish yourself and in some Albert Heijn stores you can do that with nuts, or (around Easter) with chocolate Easter eggs.
But the point here is that you can determine the amount yourself. You still have to put those products in disposable containers, says Emonds.
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