British supermarkets’ levels of wastage have reached epidemic levels due to unnecessary printing of till receipts.
A recent study has found that over 26,000 miles of till paper is printed per week- enough to wrap around the circumference of the planet.
The findings mean that a year’s worth of till receipts would reach the moon and back.
Leading recycling experts, Big Green, carried out the study and found that stores printing out additional offers along with the legally required receipt make the problem worse by producing paper that customers almost always ignore.
Mark Hall, a spokesperson for Big Green said: “It’s gone beyond ridiculous to become an epidemic.”
“Just popping into a big-name convenience store for a lunchtime sandwich can produce a good couple of feet of paper.
“Factor in the estimated 150 million supermarket and convenience store transactions every week, and a couple of feet soon turns into thousands of miles.”
“We found out very quickly that people don’t just go to grocery stores for a weekly ‘big shop.
“In fact, the huge majority or trips are people just popping in for one or two items. The end result for these millions of transactions is usually the same – wads of unnecessary paper.”
“While the receipt itself is a requirement, it’s the reams of promotional material to which we object
“Customers are left walking away with armfuls of ticker tape that they often bin, along with their carrier bags.”
“We’re winning the battle on single-use carrier bags but stores are slipping into other bad habits that are just as wasteful.”
