Recyclable plastic packaging that will save more than a million eggs from going to waste each year has been successfully trialed by Tesco.
At the moment Tesco's free range eggs are sold in pulp cartons and if an egg breaks in transit it can seep through the box and damage other packs beneath it.
But now the supermarket is trialing a recyclable plastic packaging made from recycled plastic drinks bottles. If an egg breaks then the seepage can be contained in one pack.
Over the last eight weeks Tesco has trialed the new 12 egg packaging in nearly 200 stores served by depots in the Livingston area in Scotland and in the Belfast area in Northern Ireland.
Tesco technologist Lee Gray said: "We know that plastic packs reduce food waste - now we have a pack that will reduce food waste and offer customers a more environmentally friendly packaging solution.
"If used across all our free range egg range then it will save on average more than one million eggs each year that would otherwise be going to waste.
"The results of the trial are very positive and we hope to be able to roll out the packaging by the end of the year."
Other benefits are that the new cartons will take up less space during transportation as well as less shelf space in store and will also decrease CO2.
Tesco is working with a third party supply chain consultancy firm to measure this benefit.
