Lidl Ireland, together with supplier Meade Potato Company, has announced the introduction of their 100% compostable form fill potato bag. This bag, which is the first of its kind in the potato category in Ireland, harnesses existing efficient packing machines and eliminates conventional plastic making it fully compostable. The 2kg Meade White Potatoes are available now for €2.69 nationwide through Lidl’s network of 162 stores.
Meade’s 2kg White Potatoes are packed in a 100% Seedling* certified compostable bag that uses FSC** certified sustainably-sourced paper, strengthened with starch and printed with water-based ink. The window of the bag is made with corn-starch based netting. This innovative solution has eliminated all conventional plastic from the packaging making it 100% compostable and suitable for disposal in all consumers’ brown bins for industrial composting***. In addition to this the new bag uses 34% less paper than traditional paper bagging machines.
Meade Potato Company has been working with Lidl Ireland for 20 years and is one of Ireland’s leading growers, packers and distributors of fresh produce. Based at their farm in Lobinstown, County Meath, the Meade family specialise in growing potatoes, carrots and onions, and work with a team of growers, both in Ireland and abroad, to source a full range of fresh produce for Lidl Ireland.
Ciara Sheehan, CSR Manager, Lidl Ireland said: “As a business, Lidl has an incredible working relationship with the Meade family so we’re delighted that, as we continue to grow our sustainability strategy, they’re able to grow with us. As we’re fully committed to ensuring we drive positive change for the environment and for our customers, we’re excited to be the first retailer in Ireland to introduce a 100% compostable form fill potato bag.
“Sustainability is core to our business and we’re constantly looking at ways we can change our packaging which has included the removal of black packaging from our entire fruit and vegetable range. Other recent sustainability initiatives to support our customers include the introduction of reusable fruit and vegetable bags in store, the installation of customer recycling bins and now by giving our customers a sustainable packaging option for their potatoes, we’re continuing to empower consumers to make greener choices.”
Philip Meade Jr, Commercial Manager, Meade Potato Company said: “We’ve been working with Lidl since they first came to Ireland two decades ago, introducing new, quality products to the fresh produce category and teaming up with them on sustainability projects, such as the FoodCloud gleaning initiative. We’re delighted to be partnering with them again to bring a more sustainable product to the consumer. This bag represents a breakthrough in packaging. And needless to say, the potatoes packed in the bag are, as we always ensure, absolutely delicious!”
“The introduction of this bag represents a win for the environment and the consumer. Plastic that is hard to recycle has been eliminated completely and replaced with paper that can be composted, ending up ultimately as fertiliser, possibly for growing more potatoes. Consumers get to enjoy the quality potatoes inside the compostable bag. So it’s a win-win all around for everybody!”
This move is one of many steps that Lidl is taking as part of its CSR strategy, A Better Tomorrow. In November, Lidl announced the roll out of ‘Waste Not’, which sees up to 90% price reductions on a range of fresh chilled food products on reaching their best before date but are still perfectly fine to eat. Fresh meat, poultry, fish, and chilled products such as prepared salads, cooked meats, milk and yoghurts, will all qualify for a price reduction through ‘Waste Not’, with the reduction varying per product type. In line with Lidl’s A Better Tomorrow strategy, Meade Potato Company is a zero food waste company, having implemented numerous crop, energy, water and manufacturing efficiency measures throughout their farm and food production facility in conjunction with Bord Bia’s Origin Green programme.
