Extending the Single-Use Carrier Bag Charge
Posted on in Business News , Cycles News
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' propose to extend the single-use carrier bag charge to all retailers in England and the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) welcome the proposal.
According to ACS findings, currently, 46% of independent convenience retailers voluntarily charge for single-use plastic bags and 79% support the charge being extended to smaller retailers.
Last year the ACS worked in partnership with Defra to develop and promote a voluntary single-use plastic bag charge to small retailers seeing a 4% increase in the number of retailers charging.
ACS has been campaigning for the extension of plastic bag charges to small retailers as it was very successful in Wales and Scotland.
Smaller retailers volunteering to charge for plastic bags have used the opportunity to contribute to their local community by donating the plastic bag proceeds to good causes, cut their costs by reducing the number of bags needed to be bought and have a positive impact on the environment.
56% of consumers support the increase in plastic bag charges from 5p to 10p, with 44% of consumers already purchasing single-use plastic bags confirming that an increase in the charge would reduce the number of single-use bags bought.
Get in contact with the ACS for more information, read the full report here.