Need to Know

UK – The Beat the Receipt campaign is partnering with leading UK retailers to reduce the waste and environmental impact of paper receipts.

With around 50% of paper receipts containing the same chemicals used in single-use plastic, and 90% of the 11 billion receipts printed in the UK each year lost, thrown away or fading beyond use, Beat the Receipt is encouraging both brands and consumers to end their reliance on these paper slips.

In response, Flux – the agency behind the campaign – has won commitment from retailers including KFC, Itsu, EAT and Pure to reduce their paper waste, highlighting the digital and opt-in alternatives that retailers can provide. ‘But the solution lies not just with technology. It lies in the hands of everyone who shops and everyone behind a till. We can all create change,’ explains Matty Cusden-Ross, CEO of Flux and BeatTheReceipt.

Coinciding with this, Flux has launched an online petition for the public and brands to sign, landing at a time when both consumers and retailers are increasingly conscious about the waste linked to buying and selling.

New York – The WeWork Food Labs will offer R&D spaces specifically for those working in the food industry.

The space, which will open in New York’s Chelsea neighbourhood later this year, includes an innovation lab that will contribute $1m (£763k, €890k) in equity investments to a number of start-ups. Although the space doesn’t include a commercial kitchen, members will be able to gain access to shared kitchens at a discount.

According to Roee Adler, global head of WeWork Lab, the brand isn’t looking for the next big food brand but hopes that companies will find solutions to the food industry’s biggest issues such as farming and sustainability. ‘One of the most interesting areas of innovation in the world today is food, and we are uniquely positioned to support the next generation of food and agriculture startups,’ says Adler.

Read our microtrend Edible Incubators to see how the food and drink sector is drawing inspiration from Silicon Valley, with new incubators opening that foster collaboration.

Cohabitation among unmarried adults is losing its stigma, even among older generations, according to a study by Bedbible. Some 54% of the Silent Generation, those born between 1925 and 1942, say that cohabitation among people who aren’t married doesn’t make a difference in society.

This viewpoint is even more common among Generation Z and Millennials, with one-in-five saying cohabitation is good for society. When it comes to solo parenting, however, just 15% of these consumers view single mothers as a positive thing for society, highlighting the opportunity for brands to empower single mothers by transforming how they are perceived.

In our latest macrotrend Uncoupled Living, we explore how brands can tackle important societal trends such as Modern Cohabitation and Single Parents Empowered.