Global Plastics Ordinance

Update: The Indian government has imposed a ban on various single-use plastic products to combat pollution in the country. The list of banned items includes ice cream bars, plastic plates, knives, forks, straws, and other tableware packaging or plastic packaging films.

As the first Asian country to launch a plastic agreement, India is working with other UN member states to end plastic pollution. The United Nations estimates that India accounts for about a third of the world's 11 million tons of marine debris each year. In India, a populous country of 1.4 billion people, about 5 million people rely on the informal waste economy -- collecting waste from public dumps and taking it to recycling centers. With the ban, the scavengers also face an uncertain future.

This situation is not unique.

Reducing or even banning the use of plastic has become a global trend. Various countries are taking action to limit and ban plastic, to make all plastic packaging reusable or recyclable.

The European

The EU introduced a plastic ban in 2015 intending to limit plastic bag consumption in EU countries, followed by a decree banning single-use plastics such as straws and cutlery from 2021.

France banned the sale of certain single-use plastics from 2020 and then will ban restaurants, including fast-food chains, from providing disposable cutlery to in-room customers in 2022. The ultimate goal is to reduce single-use plastics to zero by 2040.

Germany has imposed a tax on single-use plastic bags since 2016.

Italy became the first European country to impose a total plastic ban in 2011.

Asia

China imposed a ban on plastic bags as early as 2008, followed by a series of provincial bans on plastic bags. In 2020, more than 13 provinces and autonomous regions have issued an upgraded version of the ban on plastic local laws and regulations.

In 2010, supermarkets were banned from giving out free single-use plastic bags. In 2018, coffee shops were banned from using single-use plastic cups and the restrictions were later extended to supermarkets and bakeries.

The Japanese government will implement the regulation in 2020 to provide plastic bags for a fee, allowing businesses to decide the price.

Thailand, Pakistan, New Zealand, Mongolia, and other countries have introduced laws banning the use of single-use plastic bags.

Africa

Africa is one of the regions with the biggest plastic ban in the world. As of June 2019, 34 out of 55 African countries had enacted laws banning or taxing single-use plastic bags.

Facing the crisis of "white pollution", the promulgation and implementation of bans on plastic in various countries will have a positive impact on many fields such as aerospace, food, and beverages in the future. And the requirements of plastic limits and bans are stimulating a variety of sustainable packaging materials market to flourish.?

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