Moroccan Supermarkets Tackling Single-Use Plastics

Traditional Moroccan mud-brick village with mountains in the background.

MOSSUP

Morocco generates more than 1 million tons of plastic every year. The increasing plastic pollution in the environment is adversely affecting wildlife, wildlife habitat, and humans. The current waste management system in Morocco is not fit to safely collect and recycle plastics. As a result, more than 33% of plastic waste is dumped in uncontrolled landfills. With the project “Moroccan Supermarkets tackling Single-Use Plastics” (MOSSUP), Searious Business aims to reduce the amount of single-use plastic currently discarded into nature.

The project’s end goal is to increase collection of post-consumer plastic waste and improve the recycling rate of PET plastic. By working with two major Moroccan supermarket chains, Marjane and Carrefour which operates as Label Vie, we are demonstrating how retailers can make changes that reduce plastic leakage into the environment, preserve Moroccan ecosystems and limit exposure to hazards from waste.

Flowchart illustrating the life cycle of plastics. Primary production shows 1,000,000 tons of plastic generated per year. Plastic use is depicted with urban buildings. At the end of life, 60% (600,000 tons) are in controlled landfills or incinerated, 33% (>330,000 tons) are in uncontrolled landfills and dumps, and 7% (70,000 tons) are recycled and re-enter production as secondary material.

PILOTS TO TACKLE SINGLE-USE PLASTICS

Two strategies are being trialled in selected stores from spring 2021

Pilot A

PET bottle deposit scheme

Outline of a plastic bottle inside a circular arrow, symbolizing recycling.

An indoor scene in a shopping mall with a man placing a plastic bottle into a recycling machine. The machine offers vouchers for recycling, with signage in French. People wearing masks are visible in the background near a disinfectant station.

Pilot A is a deposit return scheme which enables a closed loop for bottle-to-bottle recycling. Supermarket customers are invited to return PET plastic bottles to a dedicated collection point in participating stores. For each bottle returned, the customer will receive a voucher or loyalty card points to spend in store. The bottles will be recycled into food grade plastic for use in new bottles. There is great potential for upscaling; we estimate over 26 million bottles could be collected every year in the city of Rabat alone. This equates to savings of 790 tonnes of CO2 and 530 tonnes of plastic waste avoided.

790 tonnes

Outline of a factory with smokestack emitting smoke, simple line drawing.

of CO2 per year

of plastics waste saved

Outline of two large sacks or bags with ties on top.

530 tonnes

of landfill space saved

Outline of a recycling truck with a recycle symbol

23000 m3

Illustration of three outlined plastic bottles on black background

26 million bottles

revenue from sale of plastic collected

€ 120,000

Pilot B

Reusable food container scheme

Outline of a suitcase inside a circle with arrows around it, symbolizing recycling or reuse.

Inside a Moroccan grocery store with a spice and olive section with reusable packaging, worker in background

Pilot B introduces reusable packaging as an alternative to single-use plastic food containers. Deli-counter customers are encouraged to opt for a reusable container which creates zero waste. They pay a small deposit for the container which will be returned when they bring the container back to store. The reusable containers are washed and reused. If widely implemented the city of Rabat alone could avoid a huge 5000 tonnes of plastic waste and save 14,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.Both pilots present solutions which fit the circular economy, and could bring about significant and lasting change to the country both in terms of environmental and financial benefits.

14,000 tonnes

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of CO2 per year

5,000 tonnes

Outline of two Christmas bells with bows

of plastics waste saved

Cost supermarket

€

€ 7,600

Single-use plastic

Per month

€ 91,250

€ 63,200

Per year

Outline of a rectangular container with a lid on a black background.

€ 5,200

Reusable container

COLLABORATION

Searious Business is running the MOSSUP project having been granted funding by The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs programme for Small Business Innovation Research.

We have partnered with Association Marocaine pour la Protection de l’Environment et du Climat (ASMAPEC) to provide support on the ground in Morocco. The Moroccan Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment welcomed the project proposal by Searious Business in 2020 and have provided support to the team while they have been engaging key players in the retail and recycling sectors.

Two major supermarket chains, Marjane and Carrefour, are working with us and implemented the pilots in March 2021.

AWARDS

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