Legislative
There will remain a need for shops and supermarkets to supply plastic carrier bags and other plastic products to their customers, but such is the inertia in the retail industry that they will continue to supply conventional plastics unless Governments ban conventional bags or gives financial incentives to use the more environment-friendly oxo-biodegradable alternative, as the UK Government did a few years ago with unleaded petrol.
Ireland introduced a tax on plastic carrier bags in March 2002. It has significantly reduced the number of carrier bags in circulation, but still a very large number of conventional plastic carrier bags are being supplied at shops and supermarkets. The Irish Government missed the opportunity to encourage or require a move to oxo-biodegradability.
Action has however been taken by a number of other Governments around the world to encourage a move to degradable plastic. For example, in India, legislation provides for making the use of non-biodegradable plastic bags a punishable offence, and provides for certification of biodegradability by government-approved laboratories. On 7th January 2005 Malta decided to charge a lower tax on bags made from degradable plastic, and Barbados charges 60% import surtax on non-degradable plastic bags imported from outside CARICOM, but only 15% on oxo-biodegradable plastic bags. Mauritius has banned the import or local manufacture of non-degradable plastic bags altogether and has specified that only oxo-biodegradable plastic can be considered degradable.
The government in France has introduced legislation with effect from 1st January 2010, that will completely ban the sale and distribution of all non-biodegradable plastic bags and plastic packaging
A detailed description of the current UK/EU position, together with a Briefing Note for UK and EU Legislators, can be found on the UK Marketing website.