The Schwarz Group has taken stock 
of the goals and progress of its group-wide plastics strategy 'REset Plastic'. The reason for this is the Global Commitment 2021 Progress Report published today by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, whose initiative the Schwarz Group joined in 2018.
The interim report shows: The corporate group is making great strides towards its ambitious goals. Numerous sustainable optimization measures have contributed to an average of 13 percent less plastic being used in the private label packaging of the Lidl and Kaufland retail divisions across all countries - for example, by omitting disposable plastic lids from 500-gram yogurt pots or using recyclable stickers instead of poly bags in the fruit and vegetable section. Already today, 38 percent of all fruit and vegetable items at Lidl and 57 percent at Kaufland are unpackaged.
However, the Group is not only reducing the use of plastic wherever possible, but is also increasing its focus on promoting the circular economy and the associated use of recyclate.
Previous milestones in the Schwarz Group's use of recyclate:
- Currently, the Schwarz Group already uses 10 percent recyclate in all own-brand plastic packaging across all countries - at Lidl Germany, the figure is 19 percent, and at Kaufland Germany, 16 percent (as of fiscal 2020).
- Since June 2021, all disposable PET bottles produced by Schwarz Produktion for Lidl and Kaufland private labels in Germany have been made of 100 percent* recycled plastic (rPET).
- In cooperation with PreZero, Lidl and Kaufland offer their customers own-brand household goods on special offer that are made from 100 percent** recycled material - an offer that the corporate group will further expand in the future.
This makes the Schwarz Group a pioneer in the circular economy and demonstrates how recyclable materials can be recycled in the best possible way and how the need for new plastic can be reduced.
Increasing the recycling target to 25 percent
Against this backdrop, the Schwarz Group is now going one step further and increasing its recycling target: by 2025, the corporate group aims to use an average of 25 percent recyclate in the private label packaging of its Lidl and Kaufland retail divisions.
The interim balance sheet makes it clear that the Schwarz Group is steadily pushing ahead with its vision of "Less plastic - closed cycles" and is committed to a responsible approach to plastic, from production and retail through to disposal and recycling.
* excluding lid and label
** Plastic content (circa 95 percent) of the product 100 percent recycled plastic, additional use of additives and color (circa 5 percent).
Source: gruppe.schwarz