Deep Dive: Is Hong Kong plastic bag levy working? Some shops, online retailers, wet market stalls ignoring rules

Hong Kong online grocery stores may have broken environmental protection laws. The city’s consumer watchdog has found that they were not charging the required HK$1 fee per plastic bag. Some were also giving too many plastic bags to customers.

The Consumer Council discovered that almost half of the retailers they checked did not follow Hong Kong’s plastic bag levy. It is telling shops to use less packaging for their items and give “no bag” options.

The watchdog also said that the government should give easy-to-follow guidelines for shops. They hope to help the city use fewer disposable plastics.

Professor Nora Tam Fung-yee is the chairwoman of the council’s research and testing committee. She explained that online shoppers should have the same choices as those who visit bricks-and-mortar stores.

“Consumers have the right to information and choice. We could choose to not use a plastic bag when visiting a physical store,” Tam said. “Why couldn’t we have such an option when shopping online?”

The council also suggested that online stores and e-commerce platforms make it clear how much they charge for plastic bags. They should also state how much packaging will be used.

“These include stating the scope and quantity of additional plastic bags and insulated bags to be used by the traders in the course of transportation,” Tam said.

Retailers, including online ones, are required to charge a minimum of HK$1 for each plastic bag, unless food items are unpackaged. Apita Uny and DCH Foods gave plastic bags without charging the fees for all food.

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HKTVmall, ParknShop and Yata did the same in some trial orders. HKTVmall charged HK$2, but used six plastic bags for nine food items. HKTVmall told the council that plastic bags and packaging helped them identify the products as they were delivered to customers.

The council received 39 complaints related to plastic bag use between January and July.

A spokeswoman for the Environmental Protection Department said it occasionally investigated if online platforms properly applied the plastic bag fee by having officers pretend to be shoppers.

Later this year, the department will roll out new guidelines on how e-commerce platforms and the logistics industry should use plastic bags.
Staff writer

Question prompts

1. How have some online stores ignored the environmental protection law mentioned in News?
(1) by not charging customers for plastic bags
(2) by insisting customers pay for plastic bags
(3) by giving more plastic bags than needed
(4) by refusing to give customers plastic bags for food items

A. (1) and (2) only
B. (2) and (3) only
C. (3) and (1) only
D. (4) and (2) only

2. What is the reason for the HK$1 fee for plastic bags? Explain using News and your own knowledge.

3. In addition to Nora Tam’s suggestion, list and elaborate on ONE item the government can include in its guidelines for how e-commerce platforms should use plastic bags to make sure that retailers follow the rules.

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Question prompts

1. What is this table about?
(1) how retailers can reduce plastic use
(2) penalties for violating the plastic bag law
(3) actions taken by the Hong Kong government to protect the environment
(4) plans for phasing out the use of plastic in Hong Kong

A. (1) and (4) only
B. (2) and (3) only
C. (3) and (1) only
D. (3) and (4) only

2. How can the government help retailers to achieve the targets in the table? Provide TWO suggestions.

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• The Post checked two wet markets and found that almost all shoppers were using plastic bags when buying seafood and poultry

• A green group says it might be too soon to say if the fee has actually reduced plastic bag usage

Hong Kong authorities have reported a sharp drop in the number of plastic bags distributed since a levy on their usage was doubled to HK$1 late last year. But a check by the Post at two wet markets in Causeway Bay in April found that almost all shoppers were using plastic bags for their purchases of seafood and poultry, even though most of them had their own bags or trolleys.

One saleswoman, who asked not to be named, said the stall provided free bags to customers who wanted them, even for packaged items, to prevent dripping water.

All eight fishmongers that were observed double-bagged their items for customers.

Bank teller Grace Yuen, 40, said that although she had her own basket, it felt unhygienic to place her lobsters, mussels and pork alongside the apples, celery and bok choy that she bought.

It was a different scene at a pharmacy in the same area, where none of the 17 customers who emerged over 30 minutes had a plastic bag.

According to the Environmental Protection Department, the number of plastic bags distributed fell by three-fifths year on year in the first two months since the levy was doubled. The number of flat-top bags distributed fell by more than four-fifths.

“We are pleased to see that the enhanced scheme is effective ... and hope that the public and retailers can continue to go plastic-free,” a spokesman said.

Retailers who fail to charge customers for plastic bags face a fixed penalty of a HK$2,000 fine. Repeat violations may result in a fine of up to HK$100,000. The spokesman said the department inspected about 4,100 retail points and issued seven verbal warnings between January and February, but did not penalise anyone for failing to comply with the rule.

Environmental group Friends of the Earth (Hong Kong) said it might be too early to conclude that the doubled levy was dissuading people from using plastic bags. “The initial decrease is within expectations. Whenever a policy is rolled out, people need time to get used to it,” the group’s chief executive Jeffrey Hung Oi-shing said. “There will be a resurgence after people get over the shock.”

Government data showed the number of discarded plastic bags fell to 3.9 billion in 2015, but rebounded to 4.5 billion in 2018.
Staff writer

Question prompts

1. What are the penalties for retailers who ignore the plastic bag charge law?
(1) jail term of up to two years
(2) a fixed penalty of HK$2,000
(3) a fine of up to HK$100,000
(4) suspension of their licence

A. (1) and (2) only
B. (2) and (3) only
C. (3) and (1) only
D. (4) and (3) only

2. What data is presented to indicate that the double levy scheme is working?

3. Identify ONE reason for the continued use of plastic bags at wet markets and provide ONE suggestion for how the government can address this problem.

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Question prompts

1. What do all the items in the graphic have in common? Use Glossary to explain why shoppers would be required to pay a fee for plastic bags holding these items.

2. Are there items in the graphic that might not need their packaging? What could the government do to address this issue?

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1. consumer watchdog: an official organisation that works to protect the rights and interests of people who buy things or use services

2. disposable plastics: also called single-use plastics. These include items such as plastic bags, straws, coffee stirrers, drink bottles and most food packaging that are used only once before they are thrown away or recycled.

3. e-commerce platforms: also called online retailers. They give merchants a website or app where they can sell goods. Examples are Taobao, HKTVmall and AliExpress.

4. flat-top bags: plastic bags without handles used for loose food items such as fruit and vegetables. Before the HK$1 levy, consumers could take such bags for free at supermarkets.

5. insulated bags: a bag that keeps food and drinks at a desired temperature for some time. Most insulated bags have a waterproof and heat-reflective inner layer made of foil, thick vinyl or plastic to maintain temperature.

6. plastic bag levy: introduced in 2009 at about 3,000 retail outlets including supermarkets and convenience stores. It initially required shoppers to pay 50 HK cents for every plastic bag they used for groceries, but not for takeaway items or loose, unpackaged foods. Environmental authorities said the number of plastic bags at landfills fell sharply from 660 million to 150 million within a year. The scheme was extended to all retail shops in 2015. The levy was doubled to HK$1 last December.

News
1. C. (3) and (1) only
2. The levy is based on the idea that people are more likely to think twice about using a plastic bag if they have to pay for it. The HK$1 levy on plastic bags aims to reduce plastic pollution by making people pay for each bag they use. This aims to discourage people from using single-use plastic bags and encourages them to use reusable bags instead.
3. E-commerce platforms and logistics companies should be given reasonable targets (based on the nature of the company and products sold) for reducing their plastic bag usage and face a penalty if they miss these goals. This will deter retailers from giving out unnecessary plastic bags. (accept other reasonable answers)

Table
1. D. (3) and (4) only 2. Provide financial incentives for retailers to use sustainable packaging, with recycled or compostable materials. This can help to encourage retailers to switch to more environmentally friendly packaging options. / Support research and development into new plastic alternatives, such as biodegradable plastics. This can help to find more sustainable ways to package and transport items. (accept other reasonable answers)

Issue
1. B. (2) and (3) only
2. The number of plastic bags distributed fell by three-fifths year on year in the first two months since the levy was doubled. The number of flat-top bags distributed also fell by more than four-fifths.
3. Some customers find it unhygienic to place their meat and seafood together with other groceries in the same bag. The government can address the issue of plastic bag usage by incentivising retailers and customers to use reusable containers instead. This can be done by providing subsidies to retailers who offer reusable containers and by giving discounts to customers who bring them.

Illustration
1. They are already in some sort of packaging. An additional plastic bag to hold these pre-packaged food items would be excessive. That is why these items fall under the fee.
2. Potatoes and other vegetables or fruits don’t need to be placed in mesh bags or plastic boxes. Wet markets sell these as loose produce already. The government can start requiring another fee for unnecessary packaging, which will eventually dissuade customers and retailers from selling these.