InfoGraphic

Plastic bag ban yet to be enforced

By He Na (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-06-29 15:45

A farmer rides through a forest covered with used plastic bags in Toksun of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in this file photo. [China Daily]

Environmental fears increase as market vendors flout regulation. He Na in Beijing reports.

Above every stall in the Dongjiao wholesale market hangs a blue and white sign that reads: "We charge for plastic bags." Underneath is a price list for the various bags on offer. But walk around this bustling mall for 30 minutes and you would be hard pressed to find a vendor who actually does charge for the bags.

When China Daily reporters visited the market in Beijing's eastern Chaoyang district, vegetables were being piled into ultra-thin plastic bags even before customers had a chance to ask.

The central government's ban on free plastic bags has already been in force for two years. Although it made a huge impact early on, environmental campaigners say that in places like Dongjiao, as well as leading supermarket chains, the problem is still rampant.

White, blue, red and yellow plastic bags of all sizes - but all of equally low quality - are in easy reach of every vendor at Dongjiao.

"People are used to getting free plastic bags in the markets like ours," said a trader in his 20s named Zhao.

"If we try to charge for them or refuse to give them out, customers get very angry and scold you and might not buy from you anymore."

Large bags cost about 10 fen each - 100 fen make up 1 yuan ($0.14) - which "is a little expensive, so I only give these bags to my loyal customers", Zhao said. Small ones can be bought in packs of 85 for 1 yuan.

At large supermarkets, most of which do charge for plastic bags, consumer studies show the amount being sold is also on the rise, sparking fears that few people are re-using the bags.

"I think more customers order plastic bags now than last year," said Yin Huiping, a cashier at the Ito Yokado superstore along the capital's North 4th Ring Road. "I sell at least 50 to 60 plastic bags on average during a six-hour shift, while that number reaches more than 100 on weekends and holidays."

Most of the customers who buy plastic bags are young people who purchase a large number of goods at one time and usually ask for two or three bags, she said.

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Chinese retailers have been under orders to charge for plastic bags since the State Council implemented the policy in June 2008. A nationwide ban was also placed on all bags thinner than 0.025 mm.

As about three tons of petroleum is used in the manufacture of just one ton of plastics, environmentalists hailed the move as a direct measure to promote greater energy efficiency and cut pollution. And, initially, it proved a great success.

Figures released by the Beijing-based International Food Packaging Association showed that during the first 12 months of the ban, consumption of plastic bags by 80 to 90 percent in supermarkets and hypermarkets. Grocery stores, farmers' markets and wet markets also saw a sharp drop, with usage cut by about half.

Nationwide, the number of plastic bags sold just in chain stores fell by 40 billion, helping to save more than 1.2 million tons of petroleum resources, statistics show.

"But after the first year, sales began to increase in supermarkets, while mini-mart owners started offering them for free again," said Dong Jinshi, secretary-general of the association. "At farmers' markets and grocery stores, it is common to see customers holding four or five plastic bags of different colors - all of them free."