Asda Food to go vegan salad

The move is timed to coincide with the summer season, when plastic forks are common in food-to-go meals

Asda has announced plans to scrap plastic forks from its salads and protein bowls, in a move it claims will cut its plastic use by 41 tonnes a year.

The move would result in the removal of more than 24.5 million plastic forks each year across Asda’s own-brand salads, it said.

Asda has committed to reducing own-brand plastic packaging by 15% by 2021 and reaching 30% recycled content in its plastic packaging by the end of 2020.

The latest move, timed to coincide with the summer season when plastic forks were normally common in supermarket food-to-go meals, would mean in fresh produce it had already removed 256 tonnes of plastic in 2020.

The new, fork-free packaging will come into stores from 25 June.

“We are passionate about delivering our commitment to customers to use less and recycle more and this move marks the next step in our journey as we strive to reduce own-brand plastic packaging by 15% by 2021,” said Asda director of produce Kevin Patel.

“We know that customers like the ease of picking up salads and fresh produce on the go, but we know they are passionate about the environment and plastic pollution, which is why we have made the decision to remove plastic forks so our customers don’t have to choose between living sustainably and shopping with ease.”