The "Optimized Plastic Shopping Bag Charging Scheme" will be implemented on December 31, and the minimum charge will be raised from 50 cents to 1 yuan.
At the same time, the exemption of plastic bags for frozen or frozen food will be exempted, and the scope of exemption for plastic bags for hygienic reasons will be tightened.
"Hong Kong 01" sorts out some of the situations that you may encounter in daily life, and answers for readers whether they can be exempted.
▼Plastic bag charges will be raised to RMB 1 from December 31▼
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After the implementation of the plan, whether the bags used for food hygiene such as fruit and raw meat can be exempted depends on the situation. Exemption; when vegetables and fruits are fully packaged and there is no exposure, they will not be exempted.
1: Vegetables and fruits
After the tightening, if you buy bulk vegetables in the market, you can get free plastic bags; but the vegetables that have been put in plastic bags and weighed in supermarkets cannot get free plastic bags because they are food.
Bulk potatoes in the market are not packaged, so you can get free plastic bags; but if you buy packaged tomatoes, if you want a plastic bag, you need to pay a plastic bag fee of one yuan.
Whether free plastic bags are available, and whether they are "completely contained in the package".
Taking pears as an example, only part of the pear is covered by film, so it is not considered to be fully packaged; however, if the whole is covered by film or paper, it is listed as fully packaged, and the customer needs to pay one yuan for the plastic bag.
2. Bread
The bread on the bread shelf is generally not packaged. Of course, you can ask the clerk to provide free plastic bags.
However, if you have already sealed a plastic bag, you can still ask the clerk for a plastic bag at present, but if you need to ask for it again from December 31, you will need to pay one yuan.
3. Frozen food
When buying bulk pills and other food, of course the plastic bags used to hold them are free.
At present, when purchasing packaged frozen food, such as frozen meatballs, the clerk must provide free glue.
However, starting from December 31, packaged frozen food is "completely contained in the package", so the plastic bags are no longer free.
If you buy chicken wings in bulk at a frozen butcher shop, the plastic bags are free.
But if it is a box of sealed chicken wings, even though it is a frozen food, there will be no free plastic bags available from December 31.
4. Buy foods with bone-piercing and sharp shells
When buying fish, shrimp and crabs at seafood stalls, there must always be plastic bags, and the clerk will often take the initiative to put in the second plastic bag, and the spikes of seafood will pierce the first plastic bag.
Under the new regulations, is the second plastic bag free?
The answer is yes, because there is a chance that the free plastic bag will be damaged and other reasons, if the whole batch of food is not contained, you can get more than one plastic bag.
However, if the seafood has been packaged in the supermarket, it will be "completely loaded in the package" and no free plastic bags will be given.
5. Meat
Buying fresh pork in the market is also free of plastic bags because there is no packaging; but meat bought in supermarkets, if it has been wrapped in plastic film and plastic discs, although it is food, it cannot be used again from December 31. Enjoy free plastic bags.
Scenario 5: A frozen butcher shop buys frozen meat or balls.
In the meat freezer, customers can choose their own frozen meat or meatballs, and then put them all in plastic bags for customers to take away at checkout, and the plastic bags can be exempted.
(Photo by Ma Weijie/File photo)
The meat freezer in a frozen butcher shop allows customers to choose their own frozen meat or meatballs, and then put them all in a plastic bag for the customer to pick up at checkout, and the plastic bag can be exempted.
However, if it is also frozen meat or balls, if the merchant has pre-packaged it, customers will not be exempted if they want plastic bags.
Situation 6: Good fruits and vegetables are put in net bags.
Vegetables and fruits in mesh bags are considered complete packages.
(Photo by Ma Weijie)
Some fruits and vegetables, such as potatoes, onions, and garlic, will be packed in net bags. Although they are not airtightly packed, they will still be considered as fully packaged food, so they will not be exempted.
Scenario 7: Buying takeout
Food delivery continues to be exempt.
(Photo by Ou Jiale/File photo)
After the implementation of the plan, food delivery can continue to be exempted, but it must meet the following four basic conditions before it can be considered as food delivery.
- available for immediate consumption (the food is in a state ready for consumption on the spot)
- prepared on the spot (the food is manufactured at the point of sale or is cooked in any way, or otherwise processed for sale)
- at the time of sale, the intention of the seller Intended for consumption outside of the place where it was sold
- not in airtight packaging
If the above conditions are met, the takeaway plastic bags can be exempted.
Plastic bag levy︱From 12.31 onwards, it will be raised to 1 yuan for frozen food, no longer free and the scope of exemption will be tightened︱The two major supermarkets and Yitian are actively cooperating with Wellcome to put away the self-service cash register flat pocket $1 plastic bag levy The fee came into effect on 12.31. Xie Weiquan’s $2 revision was rejected, but it was still supported by 28 MPs｜The government decided to increase it to 1 yuan, and the amount of materials discarded can be reduced by 25%. The goal is to implement the plastic bag levy from 12.31︱Proposed to increase the price to $1 to provoke the government : Mystery shopping will be added in the first 3 months after the effective date