At its annual meeting last month, the Packaging and Films Association's (PAFA's) new chief executive, Barry Turner, expressed the hope that Caroline Spelman, the new secretary of state at the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, would recognise the importance of packaging in minimising food waste.

"We need to stop being defensive [about plastic packaging]," he said.

"Packaging acts to preserve and is the solution, not the problem," added Peter Woodall, PAFA communications advisor. "Nobody in business uses more [packaging] and therefore spends more than they need to."

He argued that 10-times more energy is consumed in getting food to people than in the packaging used to preserve it.

Woodall also claimed that 27% more waste occurs when fresh produce is not protected, while meat lasted twice as long with plastic packaging.