Coles shopper outraged over plastic packaging

A shopper has taken aim at Coles saying she was “furious” at the amount of packaging used for her fruit and veg online order – and she has the picture to prove it.

A shopper has said she is “furious” that an online delivery from Coles saw large amounts of plastic bags were used when she specifically requested none.

The woman took to Facebook to share how her Click & Collect groceries arrived with every single type of fruit or vegetable covered in plastic.

The woman said she even ticked the option for no bags.

“It kind of defeats the purpose of ‘no plastic bags’,” she wrote. “Having one onion or one lemon in a plastic bag is really not necessary and makes me quite furious about the waste and blatant disregard for the climate.

“Get with the program guys. The general public are becoming way more vigilant about saving our planet. It’s time for you guys to start making some changes too.”

The “disgruntled customer” said she could quite easily shop at Woolworths or Aldi next door.

The woman shared this photo on Facebook.

Even single items were individually wrapped.

So much plastic.

Meanwhile, another customer took to Facebook to claim the grocer’s home brand icy poles were now individually wrapped in plastic, within the box, when they had previously been wrapped in paper.

However Coles has strenuously denied that this was ever the case. The supermarket said its icy poles had not changed packaging and the plastic sleeves were recyclable.

On the packaging of fruit and veg in individual bags, a Coles spokesman told news.com.au that the plastic was due to food safety.

“We understand the importance of appropriate packaging in maintaining food safety, supporting product longevity and reducing food waste.”

The company said that Coles offered a soft plastic recycling program and were the first major Australian supermarket to roll out the program to all stores.

“Through REDcycle, customers can recycle plastic bags as well as a wider range of other soft plastic packaging that cannot be recycled through most household kerbside recycling services.

“Coles Online customers can give their soft plastics to their customer service agent who will return it for recycling through REDcycle.”