Iceland has become the first major retailer to commit to eliminating plastic packaging for all of its own brand products, within five years, to help end the burden of plastic pollution. The company has said it will replace plastic with packaging including paper and pulp trays which would be completely recyclable, through support for initiatives, such as a bottle deposit return scheme for plastic bottles and in-store recycling.

The retailer has said it is the first major retailer globally to go “plastic-free” and aims to complete the move by the end of 2023.

The move, which has been welcomed by environmental campaigners, comes amid the growing concern over plastic pollution in oceans, where it can harm and kill oceanic wildlife.

A survey for Iceland revealed support for the shift away from plastic by retailers, with 80 percent of 5,000 people polled saying they would endorse a supermarket's move to go plastic-free.

Iceland managing director, Richard Walker, said: “The world has woken up to the scourge of plastics. A truckload is entering our oceans every minute causing untold damage to our marine environment and ultimately humanity – since we all depend on the oceans for our survival.”

“The onus is on retailers, as leading contributors to plastic packaging pollution and waste, to take a stand and deliver meaningful change,” Walker states.

“There really is no excuse for excessive packaging that creates needless waste and damages our environment”, he adds.

Last week, Prime Minister Theresa May pledged to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste within 25 years as part of the Government's environmental strategy, with calls for supermarkets to introduce “plastic-free” aisles.

Greenpeace UK executive director John Sauven, said: “Last month a long list of former heads of Britain's biggest retail groups wrote a joint statement to explain that the only solution to plastic pollution was for retailers to reject plastic entirely in favor of more sustainable alternatives like recycled paper, steel, glass and aluminum.

“Now Iceland has taken up that challenge with its bold pledge to go plastic-free within five years. It's now up to other retailers and food producers to respond to that challenge.”

Alongside its support for a deposit return system, Iceland's commitment to go plastic-free by 2023 shows that powerful retailers can take decisive action to provide what their customers want, without the environment paying for it.

Samantha Harding, from the Campaign to Protect Rural England, noted: “Iceland is steadfastly laying the path that all supermarkets should be following.