UK – British retailer Waitrose, a portfolio company of John Lewis Partnership, has announced plans to replace glass bottles with aluminum can for small-format wine ranges.
According to the retailer, this move will save 320 tonnes of packaging in the first year and marks a “significant step” towards reducing its carbon footprint.
From 15th January, the majority of small wine formats (apart from Champagne. Prosecco and Cava, and Rioja, due to appellation restrictions) will be moved from glass bottles to aluminum cans.
The new canned range format will come in 187ml, 200ml and 250ml sizes, and will include a wide range of whites, reds and rosés wines, including customer favorites Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec, Pinot Grigio, and Chardonnay.
In 2022, Waitrose says customers purchased nearly 3 million small bottles of wine across both still and sparkling categories.
Barry Dick, the Waitrose beer, wine and spirit bulk sourcing manager, said: “We’re delighted to pioneer this move and make reducing waste even easier for our customers.
“Aluminum cans weigh significantly less than glass and create less than half the amount of CO2 than the equivalent single-use glass bottle. Cans can also be recycled an infinite number of times.
“We know that more people are buying their drinks in canned formats, from cocktails on the go to craft beer, which is why making this shift in our wine category makes so much sense.
“Picking up a can of wine is a great way to enjoy wine in moderation, especially if you’re heading to a picnic or a social occasion, and it also enables customers to try a new variety without worrying about wastage or cost.”
He said he hoped the Waitrose move ‘will encourage suppliers to continue to develop a diverse and exciting range of wines in cans.’
Mini bottles of wine, Prosecco and pre-mixed alcoholic drinks have become increasingly popular in recent years, with customers becoming more health-conscious about the number of alcoholic units they drink.
The new trend has also been fueled by the lockdown, which contributed to a steady rise in the popularity of wine in cans, according to an article published in Vineyard Magazine in September, last year.
The move also comes after wine and spirits businesses called on the Government to intervene as bills for mandatory glass recycling rose so high that they wiped out some companies’ profits.
Companies that use glass bottles must legally buy “packaging waste recycling notes” as part of a system ensuring businesses that use packaging also fund recycling.
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