Supermarkets are coming under intense public scrutiny for their lack of action on plastic pollution, as new research highlights widespread frustration with the industry’s inaction, Natural Products Online reported.
A new report from the environmental group Nature 2030, published on 15 May 2025, reveals deep public dissatisfaction with supermarket practices. Nearly 80% of Britons say supermarkets continue to depend excessively on single-use plastics, and more than two-thirds believe the industry prioritises profit over environmental responsibility.
The findings emerge amid growing concern over the UK’s worsening plastic waste crisis. Official figures show that more than 12 billion single-use plastic bottles were sold last year, with a large share going unrecycled. Supermarkets play a major role in the problem, generating an estimated 30 billion pieces of avoidable plastic waste annually – putting them behind retailers in countries like France, Germany, and Spain in addressing the issue. Environmental groups have accused supermarket executives of deliberately blocking progress, pointing to industry lobbying that has delayed the UK’s long-awaited deposit return scheme until October 2027. The scheme, designed to boost recycling by adding a refundable charge to plastic bottles, has already been adopted across much of Europe, where recycling rates reach as high as 94%.
Earlier this year, Tesco, Lidl and ASDA pushed to delay the scheme, claiming it would impose financial strain. However, environmental groups counter that similar schemes have worked well and remain cost-effective in other countries.
The government has handed control of the scheme’s rollout to an industry-led group featuring executives from Tesco, Lidl and Co-Op – a decision campaigners warn could compromise the environmental integrity.
Public concern is also being driven by health risks. According to the Nature 2030 survey, 50% of people are worried about the impact of plastic on their health, while 49% said they’d favour supermarkets that phase out single-use plastics entirely.
At the same time, 57% back introducing taxes on businesses that rely on non-recyclable plastic packaging.
Doubts over the effectiveness of recycling schemes are growing. A recent Environmental Investigation Agency report found that 70% of soft plastics returned to Tesco and Sainsbury’s were burned instead of being recycled.
With plastic production set to increase, campaigners are calling on ministers to shift focus from recycling to stronger measures that cut plastic use at its origin.
