This retro approach to fruit and vegetables trialled by Lancashire supermarket Booths has proved a win
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This retro approach to displaying fruit and vegetables has proved a hit with shoppers at Lancashire supermarket Booths - and an environmental win.
It’s an old fashioned approach which has proved a hit with shoppers during a trial at Lancashire store.
Now Booths has rolled out market-style fruit and vegetables across all of its 25 stores.
Booths, which recently restyled itself with new identity-line ‘The Family Grocers’, has expanded the amount of loose fruit and vegetables available across all 25 of its stores, helping customers to buy exactly what they need while reducing food waste and unnecessary single-use plastic packaging.
Founded in 1847, Booths operates stores across Lancashire, Yorkshire, Cumbria and Cheshire. Lancashire stores include Longridge, Fulwood, Lytham, Chorley, Penwortham, Lancaster, Clitheroe and more.
If you need just one carrot, you can buy one carrot
The initiative follows a successful pilot at Booths stores in Ilkley, Carnforth and Kendal, where the expanded market-style displays proved popular with customers. The new approach will give customers greater freedom to choose both the quantity and individual pieces of produce they want—from a single carrot or apple to enough ingredients to feed the whole family.
According to WRAP, the Waste and Resources Action Programme, households account for around 70% of food waste arising after the farm gate in the UK, with fruit and vegetables making up a significant proportion of the food thrown away.
Increasing the availability of loose produce can help customers avoid buying more than they need, while also reducing the amount of plastic packaging associated with prepacked fruit and vegetables.
Customers will be encouraged to use the paper bags provided, purchase reusable mesh produce bags or bring their own suitable bags from home.
The move builds on Booths’ long-established market-style approach to food retailing. For more than a decade, the independent family grocer has encouraged customers to shop in a more flexible and considered way. This includes welcoming the use of customers’ own reusable containers at its deli counters to help reduce plastic packaging.
Nic Karran, Chief Commercial Officer at Booths, said: “We continue to take a practical and pragmatic approach to reducing food waste and unnecessary packaging. At the heart of this initiative is a very simple idea: customers should be able to buy what they need.
“ If you need just one carrot, you can buy one carrot. Small, everyday changes can make a real difference. We have all reached for a prepacked bag of produce when we are in a hurry, but it takes very little extra time—and can be a genuine pleasure—to select exactly what you want.
“Buying loose gives customers more choice and control. It can help to prevent perfectly good food from being left unused at home, while also reducing unnecessary packaging.
“We developed the pilot with WRAP’s research and targets in mind, and the response from customers in Ilkley, Carnforth and Kendal was extremely encouraging. We’re now delighted to build on that success and roll out the approach across all 25 Booths stores.”
The rollout forms part of Booths’ wider commitment to combining high-quality food and drink with practical measures that help its customers and communities reduce waste.
It’s new brand identity will roll out across stores, packaging and digital platforms throughout 2026.