By Cahal Milmo and Andy McSmith
Pressure mounted on Tuesday on Britain's supermarkets and retailers to reduce packaging drastically as political support intensified for The Independent's anti-waste campaign.
Sir Menzies Campbell, the Liberal Democrat leader, challenged leading stores to produce a detailed breakdown of how they contribute to the 4,6-million tonnes of household waste generated every year by packaging.
Retailers are to be asked whether they would back a tax on plastic bags - similar to the one which has slashed carrier bag use in Ireland - and to reveal what proportion of their fresh produce is wrapped in plastic or placed on trays.
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The increasing momentum behind The Independent's push to cut the volume of retail waste came as dozens more readers voiced their anger at the excess of plastic wrapping and campaigners called on Britain to learn lessons from other European countries.
Environmentalists pointed to a range of initiatives in Europe - from vending machines in Belgium which refund deposits on plastic and glass bottles, to bins at the checkouts in German supermarkets for customers to throw away excess packaging - and warned that Britain was lagging behind.
One reader wrote: "If you buy a product, any product, in a German shop, you can give the packaging straight back. They must then dispose of it responsibly. Wouldn't it be great to unwrap that swede or broccoli and give the cashier the clingfilm?"
Sir Menzies said there was growing unease among consumers about the quantities of packaging they have to deal with and that companies, including the big supermarkets, had to respond. He has written to all the large retailers with a list of 17 questions on issues from reducing plastic bag use to their recycling rates for paper and cardboard.
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