Unpackaged: A Circular Supply Chain Solution To Scale Bulk in Retail

Single-use plastic (SUP) packaging is now firmly on the public agenda. Whilst the government and industry have started to look for solutions, most innovation to date has focused on creating alternatives to SUP packaging, such as bio plastics or paper, or improving collection and recycling systems, because this allowed 'business as usual' to continue.

Whilst these are valuable improvements, we believe the focus should be at the top of the waste hierarchy - i.e. the reduction and reuse of packaging - which would represent a true shift from a linear to a circular economy solution for plastic packaging.

With over 13 years of experience in zero-waste retail, and actively promoting reuse across the sector, Unpackaged proposes to work with a consortium of experts and industry partners to explore the feasibility of reusable packaging in the supply chain. We will leverage existing logistics infrastructure to move bulk products in a 100% circular system in order to service bulk dispensers in-store.

We believe that innovation in this area is necessary to enable retailers to implement and scale bulk (zero packaging) solutions for their customers. We aim to prove that it is possible to get rid of SUP packaging within the supply chain with a reusable alternative that is financially, operationally and environmentally viable.

The results of this research will lead to live in-store trials with our partners as we test and build our solution.