New World supermarkets will trial a returnable container system in two stores, supporting Foodstuffs’ HereForNZ commitment to reducing single-use packaging.
In a bid to send less waste to landfills, the trial known as RePlay will begin in September at New World Birkenhead in Auckland and New World Metro Willis Street in Wellington.
Customers will be able to buy deli goods in reusable containers using their phones, with a temporary $3 hold, which will be released once the container is returned to the smart bin in the store within four weeks.
The system has been developed in partnership with Bonson Packaging and co-funded by the Ministry for the Environment.
Customers will select a RePlay container and scan its QR code, after which they will tap their phone or card at the deli counter to ‘borrow’ the container. Once emptied and rinsed, customers will return the container to the store’s smart bin, which reads the QR code and releases the $3 hold.
If the customer retains the container for longer than four weeks, Bonson will charge $3 to replace it, however, the customer can be partially refunded $1 if it is returned within six months.
“We know there’s often a gap between what people say they’ll do and what they actually do,” said Foodstuffs sustainable packaging manager Debra Goulding.
“This trial is about understanding how a returnable system can help customers bridge that gap and whether returnable containers can become the new normal in supermarkets,” said Goulding.
“By working alongside local partners Circularity, Again Again, Anew and New World, we have co-designed a world-leading circular system right here in Aotearoa, New Zealand,” said Rodney Bennett, GM of Bonson Packaging.
Bonson will supply supermarkets with a fleet of RePlay containers supported by smart bin technology, designed to keep packaging at high value rather than being downcycled.
The trial will focus on understanding how many reuse cycles the containers can achieve and monitoring customer return rates to develop a scalable, high-performing solution.
“This is about more than containers,” said Goulding.
“It’s about testing whether a circular solution can be made easy, and whether it delivers on our shared goals for less waste, happier customers, and a better Aotearoa.”
