Morrisons to remove plastic wrapping on cucumbers despite food waste risk

Morrisons has made the decision to remove the plastic packaging on some of its cucumbers, despite its own tests showing that it helps to prolong shelf life.

The retailer says removing the packaging on whole cucumbers sold between March and October (when they are predominantly sourced in the UK) will save 16 million plastic sleeves from its shelves annually.

However, it’s ‘Great Taste, Less Waste’ campaign of 2009 – which was launched to help customers reduce food waste – explicitly used cucumbers as an example of when packaging is necessary to prolong quality and shelf life.

“A cucumber doesn’t look like it needs packaging as it isn’t susceptible to bruising,” Morrisons website states.

It continues: “In actual fact, a cucumber has a ‘best before’ life of 3 days – which film can increase almost 5 times over, to 14 days. This is because a cucumber is 96% water, which it begins to lose as soon as it is picked. After 3 days, it has lost so much water that it becomes dull, limp and unsellable. Wrapping it in just 1.5 grammes of plastic film extends its quality dramatically.”

Despite this, Morrisons said it believes the move to remove the plastic packaging on selected cucumbers will not lead to an increase in waste and it was responding to customer concerns. In April it said its research showed that plastic reduction is now the third most important issue to Morrisons customers.

“We’ve listened to customers’ concerns and we are doing what we can to remove plastic packaging. While plastic can serve a purpose, we believe this move will remove it from the environment without leading to food waste,” explained Richard Hatherly, Morrisons’ Senior Salad Buyer.

The retailer will continue to sell cucumbers sourced from further afield, sold during November to February, in plastic packaging, as well as the half-size cucumbers.

The Cucumber Growers’ Association (CGA) says it supports the use of plastic wrapping on cucumbers, as it prevents dehydration, damage and is more hygienic.