Packaging & cycle

[GRI 301/103-1] Waste avoidance is a key pillar of sustainable development. At almost 82 per cent, packaging waste* accounts for the biggest proportion of the total waste generated by the ALDI North Germany. For many products, packaging is essential for protection and quality assurance, making it impossible to avoid it completely. That is why we focus on recyclable materials and, in some cases, on multiple-use systems for fruit and vegetable outer packaging. Moreover, we are reviewing ways to contribute to a circular economy that helps conserve resources through packaging and through our products and carrier bags.

[GRI 301/103-2] When it comes to our transport and outer packaging, we use multiple-use systems whenever it makes economic and ecological sense to do so. Most of our fruit and vegetable products are transported in multiple-use boxes instead of conventional cardboard packaging. However, single-use packaging is unavoidable in many cases in order to protect our products during transport. In Germany, we use foils and boxes made of recyclable materials so that these can be recovered. What is more, our disposable cardboard packaging already consists partially of recycled and/or certified material in many ALDI North Group countries.

Our considerations with a view to the circular economy do not stop at packaging. In a circular economy, products are developed and manufactured in such a way that they can continue to be used or fully recovered following their original use, reducing the amount of waste and the amount of resources required to manufacture new products. We intend to encourage this mindset in future through appropriate projects.

[GRI 301/103-2/3] Most of our outer packaging is made of wood fibres. The exact figure varies from country to country. All told, almost 80 per cent of our packaging waste consists of wood, board or paper. In our International Timber Purchasing Policy, we lay out clear rules that are valid throughout the ALDI North Group for dealing with this resource – and therefore for dealing with a great deal of our packaging. We plan to change all wood and wood-based products, sales packaging, outer packaging and transport packaging to recycled or sustainably certified materials by 2020 (see Targets and status). At the same time, the purchasing policy is a binding framework for our relationship with our business partners. We work with them to rise to the social, environmental and economic challenges resulting in this field. Today, 18 per cent of our packaging waste already falls within the scope of the new International Timber Purchasing Policy. In the period under review, we started changing wood-based small packaging for fresh shell eggs to 100 per cent recycled materials.

We already use recycled fibres in textiles and footwear. Special blankets and pillows with recycled fibres, for example, are part of our special-buy product range in Germany. These fibres come from PET bottles that we take back at our reverse vending machines. The PET bottles are chopped into flakes and ultimately spun into fibres. By 2020, we plan to investigate the implementation of closed-loop projects and corresponding research projects where it makes sense and is appropriate to do so. We are also looking into expanding the use of recycled fibres.

In late 2017, we started discontinuing conventional disposable plastic shopping bags in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. Once the conversion process has been completed, these ALDI North Group countries will only carry reusable totes. For more information, please see the story entitled "Disposing with disposables".

[GRI 301/103-2/3] Our International Timber Purchasing Policy contains clear targets for packaging. Among other things, we plan to convert all newly purchased sales, outer and transport packaging for products to sustainably certified quality or recycled material, depending on availability. In this respect, we accept the FSC^®** and PEFC^™*** standards or other standards in individual consultation that contribute to the promotion of sustainable forestry and/or environmentally friendly processing. For outer and transport packaging, we accept materials that consist of at least 70 per cent recycled materials without certification. The changeover is set to start immediately and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2020. In Germany, the changeover from disposable shopping bags to reusable carrier bags is scheduled for completion by the end of 2018 in consideration of existing supplier agreements.

[GRI 301-1]

* Packaging waste
At the ALDI North Group, we differentiate between sales packaging, outer packaging and transport packaging. The outer and transport packaging included in our data is attributable to our distribution centres and stores. Our customers can dispose of sales packaging – i.e. the product and packaging combined – directly at our stores. However, our customers usually dispose of sales packaging themselves at home.

** FSC^®
The acronym FSC^® refers to the independent certification organisation Forest Stewardship Council^®. The FSC^® differentiates between three categories: FSC^® 100%, FSC^® MIX and FSC^® RECYCLED.

*** PEFC^™
The abbreviation PEFC™ stands for the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes, which is an independent, international certification organisation. PEFC™ differentiates between two categories: PEFC™ for certified fresh fibres and PEFC™ Recycled for certified recycled materials.