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Tesco has partnered with Faerch Group to launch an initiative to recycle used plastic food trays back into packaging. The retailer says that the strategy – which it claims marks an industry first – creates a “fully circular packaging solution” for its range of core chilled ready meals. The partnership with packaging manufacturer Faerch will see recovered PET trays, collected via European kerbside waste, being converted back into food-grade plastic trays. Tesco's ready meal trays already contain up to 75% recycled content, mainly from easier-to-recycle bottle flake plastic. Through the new 'Tray 2 Tray by Faerch' programme, the supermarket giant has said that a minimum of 30% recycled tray content will be included in the new ready meal trays. Adele Kearns, packaging development manager at Tesco, said: “We are determined to close the loop on our packaging – for it to be fully recyclable and contain recycled content wherever possible. We remain committed to reducing our environmental impact, and helping our customers to do the same, as we work together to protect our planet.” Ruth Price, strategic sales manager at Faerch UK, said: “We’re delighted to launch our 'Tray 2 Tray by Faerch' programme with Tesco, an essential initiative that promotes circular food packaging in the economy, and we are committed to working with our customers to keep rigid food packaging in the economy and out of the environment". She continued: "Our collaboration with Tesco is the perfect example of how material from EU waste resources can be diverted into a valuable commodity. Moving forward, our intention is to not only increase the level of tray-to-tray content but to also start taking this from local UK feedstocks.” The new trays will roll out this month across Tesco’s core own-brand chilled ready meals. The retailer says that the collaboration will “ensure that high-quality food-grade PET is kept within the supply chain, rather than being downcycled, and demonstrates that PET packaging from trays can be fully recovered and recycled at an industrial scale".