Lidl has announced the opening of a bottling plant in Derby which is supplying its stores across the UK.

The supermarket says that localising production will result in simplified transport logistics and reduce the distance products have to travel to stores, lowering Lidl’s carbon footprint and reducing costs.

The plant, called MEG Derby, has a production capacity of around 380 million bottles per year and produces a variety of water and soft drinks.

It is part of Schwarz Produktion, the umbrella brand of the Schwarz Group’s production companies. MEG is a German mineral water and soft drink manufacturer, with the Lidl partnership marking its first venture in the UK.

"This new venture with MEG Derby Ltd. marks a significant milestone in our commitment to improving efficiency, reducing our impact on the environment and providing our customers with great quality products at the lowest possible prices,” said Richard Bourns, chief commercial officer of Lidl GB. “Bringing production of this key product closer to home makes sense and aligns with Lidl GB's vision of contributing positively to the local community and economy.”

Last week, Lidl announced it is trialling a bottle return scheme in Glasgow which offers customers uncapped cash rewards to recycle their PET plastic and aluminium drink containers in stores.

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