The European Outdoor Group (EOG) has concluded one of its most successful collaborative projects, after it achieved all of its main objectives. The Single Use Plastics Project (SUPP) began in 2018 and brought companies together to develop ways to significantly reduce the impacts of their single use plastic packaging. After eight years, the 31 brands, retailers and national associations that were involved in the SUPP initiative have agreed to wrap it up.
The Single Use Plastics Project was formed in response to a demand from European Outdoor Group members and other outdoor industry stakeholders to address concerns about the use of poly bags in packaging. Led by the EOG, SUPP designed solutions that worked across the value chain rather than solely within isolated organisations. Through collaboration, SUPP was able to align the approach of companies and also limit individual workloads and impact on resources.
SUPP members were part of a network of contributing organisations, including packaging manufacturers and other experts. The project used access to the group’s knowledge base, network and research, such as life cycle assessments (LCA) and other reports. Workstreams, many of which were member-led, sought to educate and inform, guide packaging strategy, support packaging design conversations, and develop resources for use by the wider outdoor industry.
Key outputs from SUPP have included:
- The Poly Bag Standards document
- The Single Use Plastics Project Report
- A short video for consumers
- Retailer guidance and project recommendations
- A suite of member-only resources.
All of the public material has been hosted on a dedicated project website, which will remain live after SUPP is formally concluded, and includes a final summary report of the progress made to address poly bag usage and end-of-life treatment in the outdoor industry. Alongside the project workstreams, SUPP ran a UK recycling network, sustained a joint communications push, convened regular meetings (online and in-person), and gave multiple presentations to the outdoor industry at in-person trade shows and conferences.
EOG Sustainability Project Manager Dr Verity Hardy comments: “The Single Use Plastics Project has made a quantifiable impact for our members and the wider industry. It has been a really rewarding collaborative process, and that collective approach to tackling a shared challenge has been very effective. The fact that we’re now able to bring the formal project to a close is positive news, and we’re grateful to every individual and organisation that has contributed.
“Together, we have designed, tested and launched a way to reduce the use of virgin plastic and increasing the use of recycled LDPE for poly bags. SUPP has also removed poly bags from specific e-commerce products without negatively affecting product condition or consumer opinion, and introduced design guidelines for a recyclable and reusable poly bag.
“There is still room for improvement. More data is needed on the environmental performance of materials alternative to LDPE to inform sourcing decisions, municipal waste management systems must be improved to guarantee recycling of all thin film plastics, and revised EU legislation must clarify requirements for producers, brands and retailers in dealing with their plastic waste. At the EOG, and working with partners, we will continue to monitor these issues.”
All public SUPP resources can be found at www.singleuseplasticsproject.com.
Find out more about the work of the European Outdoor Group at www.europeanoutdoorgroup.com.
