British supermarket chain Sainsbury’s is replacing the plastic packaging of its entire own-brand toilet paper and kitchen towel ranges with paper-based alternatives.

The move is claimed to be the first for any UK retailer and will save 485 tonnes (t) of plastic in the process.

Starting this week, Sainsbury’s will roll out the new packaging across 27 products both in-store and online, with plans to launch across all of its lines by February next year.

The solution is recyclable at home via kerbside recycling.

Sainsbury’s product and innovation director Claire Hughes said: “We sell thousands of our own-brand toilet tissue and kitchen roll products every week and by switching from plastic to paper on these household staples, we’re able to make a significant impact in reducing plastic.

“This change alone represents the biggest plastic reduction in our grocery products so far and our customers can expect many more changes to come. Collaborating with our suppliers to develop innovative packaging solutions to reduce plastic is a major key priority for Sainsbury’s, helping us to achieve our ambitious target of increasing recycled content and recyclability.”

Last month, the retailer swapped its plastic babywear hangers to cardboard, which resulted in saving 103t of plastic a year.

The supermarket chain reduced its plastic packaging content by 30% after introducing double-length toilet rolls last year.

Earlier this month, Sainsbury’s replaced use-by dates with best-before dates on its own-brand milk range to help reduce food waste.