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China needs more efforts to fully ban free plastic bags

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-07-02 16:44

Ultra-thin plastic bags still used

Despite the admirable results in large cities and big supermarkets, farm produce fairs and small grocery shops by and large continue offering ultra-thin plastic bags to housewives who like their little perks.

At 5:00pm, June 29, Chen Yinhu, a housewife, went to buy some peaches at a grocery shop at the southern end of Maoming Road, east China's Shanghai City. At the cashier, the clerk handed over a red ultra-thin plastic bag.

"Is there any thicker bag?" asked Chen.

"No," replied the clerk bluntly.

"Doesn't the plastic bag ban forbid us from using ultra-thin bags?"

"We can use them here," replied the clerk lightly.

Ultra-thin plastic bags are also still in use in a food market in Yuyao Road, Shanghai.

Wang Li, who lives near Yuyao Road, would carry a few ultra-thin plastic bags home from generous stall keepers every day. She would have a plastic bag, even when she buys only one cucumber.

"I must give away free bags to keep frequent customers," said a stall keeper surnamed Xia.

Free thicker plastic bags may also be available for some buyers. On Sunday, Wang Li bought a watermelon at a large grocery shop at Yuyao Road. Before she could bring out the bag she had with her, the clerk had put the melon in a fairly thick plastic bag. When Wang asked about the price for the bag, the clerk said "free".

Hand-torn plastic bags favored

In contrast to farm produce fairs, large supermarkets strictly obey the free plastic bag ban, for fear of being fined by market regulators.

However, thrifty housewives have found they can get free plastic bags in the supermarket on the meat, seafood and cake counters. These plastic bags, largely rolled in bundles, may be torn apart by customers themselves (and are called hand-torn plastic bags), when they come to buy these cooked, uncooked food or cakes.

On June 29, Hu Yue, a nurse, went to the Carrefour outlet at Chongwenmen, downtown Beijing, and found that hand-torn plastic bags at the fruit and vegetable counter were very popular. Many consumers would tear one or two more bags than they needed, fold and hide them in shopping trolleys, "to be used as rubbish containers at home", as many confessed.

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