61,000 kilometers, 1,500 runners attending the race to celebrate An Phat Holdings’ 21st anniversary

On September 24, 2023, at An Phat 1 Industrial Park (Hai Duong), an offline race officially took place, ending a series of running events both online and offline on the occasion of the anniversary of 21 years of establishment of An Phat Holdings. With the theme “Accelerated – Breakthrough – Master the future”, the 21-year race of An Phat Holdings gathered more than 1,500 runners throughout the Group. 

Specifically, with the online format, the 21-day online race recorded the participation of more than 1,000 employees in Vietnam and other countries. The participation of each employee also contributes 100,000 VND/runner to the An Phat fund (minimum 5 km/21 days) to help employees in need. Meanwhile, the offline race took place at An Phat 1 Industrial Park (Hai Duong) have the participation of more than 500 runners, competing at distances of 5, 10, and 15 kilometers. 

61,000 kilometers run, more than 1,500 runners, these are the achievements recorded in the An Phat Holdings’ 21-year race. 

Speaking at the opening ceremony, CEO of An Phat Holdings Pham Do Huy Cuong said: “Through this series of online and offline races, I have seen and appreciated all employees’ spirit of enthusiasm and endeavor to exceed the set target. It can be said that every time we exceed a goal, we step over our limits. Turning 21, I hope that our employees will bring the enthusiastic and vibrant spirit of youth to devote themselves, conquer challenges, and be ready to help An Phat Holdings ‘Accelerated – Breakthrough – Master the future’ in the coming period!”. 

Representatives of BoD of An Phat Holdings awarded the medal to opening the offline race held at An Phat 1 Industrial Park (Hai Duong)

The 21 years of An Phat Holdings race Accelerated – Breakthrough – Master the future” is not only an activity that unites An Phat people but also carries many noble and humane meanings, which aim to promote the spirit, unite, practice strong will and spirit, while contributing practical values to the community. In the new period, An Phat Holdings aims to build a global Vietnamese brand, develop sustainable businesses, and contribute to the community and society. 

Runners competed at the race this morning

After 21 years of establishment and development, An Phat Holdings has left unforgettable remarks in the market, such as becoming Southeast Asia’s largest thin monolayer film producer with many large-scale projects and owning 18 subsidiaries in diversified industries and fields. An Phat Holdings’ products are present in 70 countries and territories, such as the US, Japan, Europe, Korea, Singapore, the Arab Emirates, Taiwan, and the Philippines… Besides production and business activities, An Phat Holdings is also well-known for its CSR activities. 

Other photos at the race this morning: 

Plastic businesses need a roadmap to convert to green product production

Although there are still many challenges, converting green product production is considered an inevitable trend for plastic businesses, especially when the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy which bans and restricts the production and consumption of single-use plastic products comes into practice. 

“Green production will be an inevitable trend for plastic businesses”, Mr. Nguyen Le Thang Long – Chairman of Vietnam Eco-friendly Products Manufacture Association (EPMA) said at the International Bioplastic Conference 2023 which was held on September 6 – 7, 2023, in Seoul, Korea. 

The workshop was jointly organized by the City of Seoul and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy with the participation of more than 500 experts, including experts from the United States, European Union (EU), Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam. The workshop focused on discussing issues related to bioplastics policies and markets around the world, environmental problems caused by plastics, and the prospects of biodegradable plastics to help reduce plastic pollution, and achieve the goal of building a green, sustainable economy. 

Mr. Nguyen Le Thang Long, representing Vietnamese businesses, presented at the International Bioplastics Conference 2023

Presenting at the conference with the topic “Vietnam’s bioplastic market”, Mr. Long updated the latest policies related to the roadmap to limit the production and import of single-use plastic products and packagingnon-biodegradable plastics; and products and goods containing microplastics. Among them, the most prominent is the new regulations of the Law on Environmental Protection – Decree 08/2022/ND-CP. Accordingly, from January 1, 2026, Vietnam will not produce and import non-biodegradable plastic bags with dimensions less than 50 cm x 50 cm and a film thickness of less than 50 μm, except in cases where production for export or production and import to package products and goods for sale to the market. Organizations and individuals that produce and import single-use plastic products and non-biodegradable plastic packaging will have to take responsibility for recycling and handling according to regulations. The establishment of the National EPR Council in 2023 is one of the strategic actions from the Government to enhance manufacturers’ recycling responsibility to reduce plastic pollution and support this law into practice. 

Mr. Nguyen Le Thang Long (3rd from right) with the President of the National Bioplastics Association at the International Bioplastics Conference 2023

Also according to this decree, after December 31, 2030, businesses are required to stop producing and importing single-use plastic products (except products with Vietnam eco-label certification), and non-biodegradable plastic packaging (including plastic bags that are difficult to biodegrade, foam plastic boxes for packaging and storing food) and products and goods containing microplastics, except in cases of production for export and cases of production and imports non-biodegradable plastic to package products and goods for sale to the market. 

With the above regulations, according to Mr. Long, manufacturing enterprises need to develop a roadmap to convert to green product production or have a plan to prepare for recycling costs according to the law. One of the potential solutions for single-use product manufacturers mentioned by Mr. Long is to shift their structure to produce biodegradable plastic products. This is an environmentally friendly product line, capable of decomposing into water, CO2, and humus in just 6 – 12 months. In Vietnam, one of the leading manufacturers producing this product line is An Phat Holdings Group. This product line has helped An Phat Holdings achieve many successes such as reaching the top of the best sellers on Amazon USA with revenue and products sold in 2023 growing 27 times compared to 2022. Besides, environmentally friendly products of An Phat Holdings have also successfully conquered many demanding markets such as England, Japan, Korea, the United States, and Canada… 

Biodegradable plastic products are the solution to reduce plastic pollution

Although switching to producing environmentally friendly products is considered an inevitable trend, businesses are still facing many challenges such as lack of capital and technology. Furthermore, due to the lack of specific criteria for green products, many products are cheap and not environmentally friendly but are still labeled green and compete directly with truly environmentally friendly products, which are inherently environmentally friendly with 1.5 – 2 higher prices. 

“It is predicted that by 2030, the market demand for bioplastic products in Vietnam will be about 80,000 tons. Therefore, this is a very potential market for Vietnamese businesses to exploit. However, to be able to produce quality products that meet global standards, Vietnamese businesses need to carefully prepare capital and technology to be able to convert to producing new product lines which are environmentally friendly, and high technology content,” Mr. Long shared. 

As Chairman of EPMA, Mr. Long said that EPMA will promote connections with more manufacturers to develop new product lines, promote domestic green consumption trends, and contribute to reducing plastic pollution in Vietnam.  

Single-use plastics to be banned at Han River parks

Plastic cups and containers will be banned from parks along the Han River in 2025, in an effort by Seoul City to reduce single-use plastics.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on Thursday comprehensive countermeasures against the surge of single-use plastic containers, sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Through the measures, the city aims to curb plastic waste by 10 percent and increase the recycling rate by 10 percent. The current recycling rate stands at 69 percent, and the city aims to elevate it to 79 percent by 2026.

Disposable plastic cups are stacked in a franchise coffee shop in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap


“Growing environmental pollution is a massive problem that is directly connected to the survival of the city and people. So we can’t delay responding to it,” Lee In-keun, the head of the city government’s Climate and Environment Headquarters, said during a press conference.

One of the measures is designating the various Han River parks as plastic-free zones by 2025. With that aim, food trucks at Banpo Hangang Park have changed disposable containers to multi-use ones, according to the city government.

The initiative will be expanded to Ttukseom Hangang Park by 2024 before eventually including all parks along the river by 2025.

Stores in those parks will be exempt from the regulation, but delivery services, used frequently by visitors to the parks, will be subject to it.

To this end, the city government plans to send officials to delivery service pick-up zones at the riverside parks to check if the plan is being implemented properly.

“It will be challenging to impose legal penalties on every store or citizen using disposable containers, but it’s guidance that everyone should follow,” Jung Mi-sun, chief of the Resource Recovery Facilities Bureau of Seoul City, said.

A deposit system for disposable cups will also be introduced in 2025. For coffee shop patrons who opt for disposable cups, an additional 300 won (22 cents) will be charged.

Notably, Sejong City and the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province have been testing a deposit system since December 2022, with promising results ― 3.14 million disposable cups were collected after its implementation.

It is estimated that around 630 million single-use plastic cups are used annually in Seoul’s coffee shops. Transitioning to multi-use cups could potentially reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 54 grams per cup, according to the city government.

The city will also encourage the use of multiuse cups at other facilities such as movie theaters and sports arenas, to cut the number of disposable cups being used by 100 million.

To help increase the recycling rate, Seoul is working on recycling waste plastic as raw materials. The city has signed business agreements with oil and chemical engineering companies to produce fuel oil or recycled materials from contaminated or composite waste plastic bags using pyrolysis technology.

Seoul’s comprehensive approach to tackling its plastic pollution mirrors global efforts to address this pressing issue.

Germany, for instance, has made it mandatory to use multi-use containers in restaurants and delivery services since January. The U.N. has committed to establishing an international agreement to regulate plastic pollution by 2025.

“We hope Seoul can become a model city by reducing the use of plastic and recycling waste resources,” Lee said.

Certification Scheme DINplus Home Compostable Carrier Bags

Since July 2023, DIN CERTCO GmbH (Berlin, Germany) offers a new certification scheme according to the new standard EN 17427:2022 “Packaging – Requirements and test scheme for carrier bags suitable for treatment in well-managed home composting installations”.

Based on the French standard, the European standard EN 17427 had been developed at the European level during the past year. The scope of this standard is limited to home compostable carrier bags. In addition to requirements for disintegration and biodegradability, the standard also includes specifications for extensive ecotoxicity tests and clear rules on environmentally hazardous substances and substances of very high concern. The new EU standards also includes guidelines on how well-managed home composting should look like and under which the certified bags then also biodegradable.

With this certification scheme, carrier bags, fruit and vegetable bags, and (organic) waste bags can be labeled with the trusted certification mark “DINplus Home Compostable Carrier Bags.” The modular certification scheme can also be used to certify the corresponding materials and semi-finished items

With this unique certification system according to a European standard, trust is created along the entire value chain of manufacturers, retailers, consumers and regulatory authorities.

Source: Bioplastics magazine, European Bioplastics

An Phat Holdings officially launches fundraising race to celebrate 21st anniversary

Towards the 21st anniversary of establishment (September 27, 2002-September 27, 2023), on the morning of August 30, in Hanoi, An Phat Holdings officially launched “An Phat Holdings Race: Accelerate – Breakthrough – Master the future”, spreading the message of health and healthy life style, bringing values to the community. 

The An Phat Holdings’ Race: Accelerate – Breakthrough – Master the future is organized in the form of online and offline, with the participation of employees from 18 member companies of the Group. This is a meaningful activity to strengthen the spirit of solidarity and cohesion, contributing to improving the production and business efficiency; and at the same time spread to friends, partners and customers the pride of the establishment and development of An Phat Holdings over the past two decades. 

Speaking at the launching ceremony, Mr. Pham Do Huy Cuong, CEO of An Phat Holdings affirmed: “For the first time being organized, I hope that An Phat Holdings’ Race will connect the solidarity and sports spirit of employees while contributing practical values to the community on the occasion of the 21st anniversary of its establishment. Also through this event, I hope that our employees will exercise more to improve endurance and will to conquer bigger goals together, and bring the Group to the new phase of development.” 

Mr. Pham Do Huy Cuong speaking at the launching ceremony

The running theme “Accelerate – Breakthrough – Master the future” is also the goal that An Phat Holdings aims to in the new development phase. That is a strong growth rate, constantly trying to create breakthroughs and build a sustainable future. 

Regarding the online race, it will take place for 21 days, from January 9 – September 21, 2023. With the spirit of solidarity, the participation of each employees will contribute VND 100,000 VND to An Phat Fund which helps employees in need (each athlete must complete minimum 5km in 21 days). The online race can record the results received in all different regions and countries. 

The participation of each employee will contribute VND 100,000 VND to An Phat Fund which helps employees in need

In another hand, the offline race will take place at An Phat 1 Industrial Park (Hai Duong province), from 7:00 am to 10:00 am on Sunday, September 24, 2023, with the participation of a large number of employees of the Group and subsidiaries.  

After the launching ceremony, thousands of employees across the country and abroad began to participate in the competition. 

Some pictures at the launching ceremony: 

Microplastics found in human hearts for first time

Microplastics commonly found in food packaging and paints have been discovered in the human heart for the first time.

The alarming find was made by a team of scientists from Beijing Anzhen Hospital in China, who analyzed the heart tissue of 15 patients who underwent cardiovascular surgery, according to the study published by the American Chemical Society.

Microplastics, which are less than 5 millimeters wide — or about the size of a pencil eraser, can enter the human body through the mouth, nose and other body cavities.

Doctors Kun Hua, Xiubin Yang and their team wanted to investigate whether these particles can enter people’s cardiovascular systems through indirect and direct exposures, according to a statement about the study.

Researchers collected and analyzed the heart tissue of the patients as well as blood samples from half of the participants.

They “detected tens to thousands of individual microplastic pieces in most tissue samples” and found plastic samples in all of the blood samples.

Nine types of plastic were found in five types of heart tissue. The study also found evidence suggesting that some microplastics were inadvertently introduced to the subjects during the surgeries.

Plastics found in three different parts of the heart included poly(methyl methacrylate), a plastic commonly used as a shatter-resistant alternative to glass. These particles, researchers said, “’cannot be attributed to accidental exposure during surgery.

Polyethylene terephthalate, which is used in clothing and food containers, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which is widespread in window frames, drainage pipes, paint and more, were also found.

“The detection of in vivo MPs [microplastics] is alarming, and more studies are necessary to investigate how the MPs enter the cardiac tissues and the potential effects of MPs [microplastics] on long-term prognosis after cardiac surgery,” the research team concluded.

Last year, a study suggested that humans consume about 5 grams of small plastic particles every week, or roughly the weight of your credit card.

The plastic particles make their way into the human food chain from packaging waste, and enter the body through sea salt, seafood and even drinking water, scientists at the Medical University of Vienna found.

The changes in the gastrointestinal tract caused by the microplastic have been linked to metabolic diseases like obesity, diabetes and chronic liver disease.

Source: Newyorkpost

Indonesia plans to ban single-use plastic by end of 2029

Indonesia will start imposing a ban on single-use plastic products by the end of 2029, the country’s Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar said on Monday (Jun 5). By that time, manufacturers are also mandated to reduce their use of plastic packaging by 30 per cent.   

A file photo of plastic waste seen along a river in Indonesia

Mdm Siti Nurbaya said the ban will include single-use plastic shopping bags, plastic straws and plastic cutlery while the use of styrofoams for food packaging will also be prohibited. 

“This is a way to deal with packaging wastes that are difficult to collect, have no economical value, hard to recycle and have the potential to pollute (the environment),” the minister was quoted as saying by Indonesian news agency Antara. 

Various studies and reports have named Indonesia as one of the top plastic waste producing countries in the world. 

Last year, the country of 270 million people produced 12.6 million tonnes of plastic waste, according to data from Indonesia’s environment ministry.  

Meanwhile, a study from environmental group Zero Waste Indonesia Alliance suggests that only nine per cent of plastic waste in Indonesia are recycled while the rest end up in landfills or polluting the rivers and oceans. 

Mdm Siti Nurbaya said provinces in Indonesia will be instructed to produce a plastic waste reduction road map in support of the ban taking place in 2029. 

In July 2019, the popular resort island of Bali became the first Indonesian province to impose a ban on the use of single-use plastic bags, straws and styrofoams.  

Meanwhile, the country’s capital Jakarta issued a ban on the use of single-use plastic bags in July 2020 but still allows the use of plastic straws, cutlery and styrofoams. 

Mdm Siti Nurbaya, the environment and forestry minister, said the private sector should also play its part to reduce plastic waste. She mandated all manufacturers to reduce their packaging waste by 30 per cent by the year 2029 in a bid to tackle the upstream life cycle of single-use plastic products. 

Indonesia is not the only country hoping to end its reliance on single-use plastic products. 

In 2018, Malaysia set an ambitious road map to eliminate single-use plastics by 2030. 

To support this goal, Malaysian minister for natural resources, environment and climate change Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said last month that the country aims to ban the use of plastic bags for retail purposes across all business sectors nationwide by 2025. 

How to convert CO2 to bioplastics in the age of global warming

Global warming, caused by greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide (CO2) which trap heat in the atmosphere and warms the globe, is becoming increasing prevalent with unsustainable human activity and mass production. To tackle this, we need to begin looking to bioplastics to transition away from traditional petroleum products polluting our environment. 

While some sources of emissions causing global warming are natural, (e.g., volcanoes), the rate and intensity of natural emissions are not enough to cause the drastic temperature change observed in past decades. Nature is not contributing significantly to global warming; we are. 

Citizens across 19 countries rank global warming as the greatest threat facing their country in the upcoming year. Explaining the increase in average global temperature, global warming is bringing hotter days and more severe hurricanes, wildfires, and other natural disasters. 

Widespread deforestation, unsustainable agricultural practices, and the immense release of fossil fuels cause anthropogenic global warming. While burning fossil fuels generates the energy required to power our electricity, it also emits greenhouse gasses – mainly CO2 – that totalled 5,891 million metric tons in 2020. 

The plastic production industry 

One industry powered by fossil fuels is the plastic production industry. We would produce 56 gigatons, or roughly 13% of total carbon emissions, by 2050 at the current plastic production and consumption rate. Plastic contributes to global warming by emitting greenhouse gasses at every stage of its lifecycle. 

From its humble beginning as fossil fuel, plastic is extracted from the earth using energy generated by burning fossil fuel. It is then transported to refining sites and refined through energy obtained by burning fossil fuels. Plastics are distributed to consumers and eventually moved to landfills or recycling centers using fossil fuels. Plastic production and consumption drive the emission of greenhouse gasses, causing more intense climate change and impacting millions of lives. 

It’s not difficult to see why. Petroleum-based plastics – everyday plastics – are durable, thermoresistant, waterproof, moldable, and inexpensive, allowing them to be industrialized for single-use packaging. As a result, plastics are mass-produced, consumed, and immediately disposed of, contributing to 79% of waste accumulated in landfills in 2015 and the emission of 850 million metric tons of greenhouse gasses in 2019. 

Produce biodegradable plastics using renewable resources 

To address the global impact of plastic pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, the Bose lab uses an interdisciplinary approach to produce biodegradable plastics, or bioplastics, using renewable resources, creating a zero-carbon footprint. 

Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) belongs to a class of polymers (PHA) with similar properties to petroleum plastics, making it a suitable candidate for bioplastics. 

Unlike petroleum plastic, PHB is naturally produced as intracellular carbon for energy storage in many microorganisms. Since these organisms can also degrade PHB, PHB-based bioplastics may last only several weeks in landfills instead of petroleum plastics, which last hundreds to thousands of years. While PHB is a promising alternative to conventional plastics, its high production cost and low-efficiency yield make it too expensive for everyday consumers. 

Genetic engineering can fix these shortcomings, which seeks to insert PHB genes into model organisms such as Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae to produce PHB. Model organisms are typically favored – numerous genetic tools are available for integrating genes, allowing easy manipulation. 

However, these model organisms use organic carbon substrates to make bioplastics, contributing to high bioproduction costs and CO2 emissions. Thus, to achieve the mission of a zero carbon footprint and cheaper input cost, we would need to completely alter model organisms’ metabolism so they could fix CO2ce – or discover new bugs that can already use CO2. 

Old bugs & new tools for bioproduction 

At the Bose Lab, researchers are conducting their experiments on the bacterium Rhodopseudomonas palustris (TIE-1), which has four primary metabolisms that center around fixing either organic or inorganic carbon sources to produce PHB during photosynthesis. 

TIE-1 can thrive in Microbial Electrosynthesis, a system that supplies electrons via electric current to microorganisms. This paints a picture of TIE-1 fixing CO2e in solar-panel- powered MES to produce PHB, thus producing bioplastics without the need for expensive carbon and electron sources. 

While there’s a relative lack of genetic tools available for TIE-1, researchers were able to increase the production of PHB from TIE-1 by up to 5-fold through the over-expression of RuBisCO, an enzyme responsible for CO2 fixation during the Calvin-Benson-Bassham (CBB) cycle that is active during photosynthesis. 

While the highest overproduction (5-fold) is mainly observed when mutant TIE-1 is grown in photoheterotrophic conditions with an organic carbon source, mutant TIE-1 still produces 2-fold more PHB than wild-type TIE-1 when fixing CO2. As more genetic tools are developed for TIE-1, researchers can better manipulate its genome to yield more efficient bioproducts. 

New bugs & old tools 

Besides promising preliminary research with TIE-1, researchers at the Bose lab are investigating distant relatives of TIE-1: Rhodomicrobium vannielii and Rhodomicrobium udaipurense. Like TIE-1, these bugs are versatile in their metabolism and can produce PHB, making them a suitable candidate for bioproduction. 

However, Rhodomicrobium appears to convert electrons to PHB more efficiently than TIE-1 when grown in the same conditions, thus potentially reducing input costs. However, minimal genetic tools exist for Rhodomicrobium, with the most recent technique described in 2023. 

While a lack of tools makes studying these bugs harder, it also means these organisms have a lot of potential once genetic tools are developed. Rhodomicrobium’s superior electron yield to TIE-1 shows that it’s crucial to investigate non-model organisms, for they could be a cheaper and a more reliable replacement to model organisms when producing certain bioproducts like bioplastics. 

An Phat Holdings shares experience on implementation of green label at APEC conference

APEC Seminar on Implementing Eco-Labels For Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises Towards A Green Economy

At the “APEC Seminar on Implementing Eco-Labels For Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises Towards A Green Economy” held from July 20-21 in Hanoi organized by Ministry of Industry and Trade and Asia – Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), Mr. Nguyen Le Thang Long – Deputy CEO of An Phat Holdings shared the Group’s experience in developing and implementing eco-labels towards the goal of developing a circular and green economy. Also, An Phat Holdings is the sole enterprise representing Vietnamese enterprises to have a speech at the Conference and receive appreciation from the delegates attending the event. 

The seminar focused on discussing two major issues: sharing experiences and good practices in the development and implementation of eco-labels; solutions for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to overcome difficulties in the implementation process to encourage green economic development.  

As a leading enterprise in Southeast Asia in the field of high-tech and environmentally friendly plastic production, green and sustainable development is determined as An Phat Holdings’ strategic goal. Speaking at the seminar, Mr. Nguyen Le Thang Long – Deputy CEO of An Phat Holdings shared his experience in developing and implementing eco-labels, as well as opportunities and challenges when implementing eco-labels in the process towards the goal of developing a sustainable green economy. 

“When talking about the circular economy, we often think of products that are manufactured, then used, collected and recycled. However, for compostable products, we have greater vision in the circular economy. Accordingly, after the product is marketed, used by consumers, it will eventually become an organic, biodegradable waste. It will become organic humus, providing nutrients for plants, then, plants become materials to create compostable products. We call this process like a green economy,” said Mr. Long. 

APEC Seminar on Implementing Eco-Labels For Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises Towards A Green Economy
APEC Seminar on Implementing Eco-Labels For Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises Towards A Green Economy

Mr. Long cited that AnEco’s flagship product line of An Phat Holdings has achieved many prestigious Vietnamese and international certifications for its ability to decompose such as: TCVN 13114, TUV OK Compost HOME, TUV OK Compost INDUSTRIAL, BPI Compostable and DIN Certco, ensuring safety for consumers’ health, and no harm to the environment. 

However, according to Mr. Long, one of the challenges that An Phat Holdings faces when producing green products is raising awareness and changing consumer consumption habits. In fact, there is still great confusion between OXO and truly green plastic products, causing confusion for consumers. Therefore, An Phat Holdings is currently coordinating with related units to promote propaganda activities, raise awareness in society about environmentally friendly products, contribute to changing consumer behavior and habits towards a green economy. 

Mr. Nguyen Le Thang Long (standing on the left) – Deputy CEO of An Phat Holdings shares his experience in developing and implementing eco-brands
Mr. Nguyen Le Thang Long (standing on the left) – Deputy CEO of An Phat Holdings shares his experience in developing and implementing eco-brands

In the context that the circular economy has become an inevitable global trend, An Phat Holdings has been promoting a green business model, and at the same time desire to create a sustainable business community, support and encourage green transformation in businesses.

Singapore Supermarkets Start Charging for Plastic Bags

Shoppers now have to pay 5 Singapore cents a bag at major grocery stores, or bring their own reusable tote.

Plastic bags are still a way of life for shoppers in Singapore.Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

Major supermarket chains in Singapore have started charging for plastic bags, a government move designed to encourage shoppers to use reusable totes that is years behind countries including South Korea and Japan.

Beginning Monday, around 400 outlets — or two-thirds of all supermarkets in Singapore — are required to charge shoppers at least S$0.05 ($0.04) for each disposable bag. The fee applies to bags of any material type, though plastic is by far the most commonly used material at major grocery stores such as FairPrice, Sheng Siong and Cold Storage.

“Whether they are made of paper, plastics, or biodegradable materials, disposables have an impact on our environment during their production, transportation, and disposal,” Singapore’s National Environment Agency said on its website. Consumption of disposables will generate waste and carbon emissions, worsening the climate crisis, it said.

Under its Zero Waste Masterplan, Singapore aims to reduce the amount of waste sent to its only landfill each day by 30% by 2030. But compared with other Asian countries, Singapore has been a laggard when it comes to slowing down plastic consumption in stores. In Japan, a mandatory charge on plastic bags in all retail shops was put in place in 2020, while South Korea banned single-used plastic bags at major supermarkets in 2019. Thailand also banned single-use plastic bags at major stores in 2020.

Retailers will display signs in English, Malay, Chinese and Tamil alerting shoppers to the new fee.Source: National Environment Agency
Retailers will display signs in English, Malay, Chinese and Tamil alerting shoppers to the new fee.Source: National Environment Agency

The Singapore government is encouraging supermarket chains to donate the proceeds from the bag fee to environmental or social causes. Some stores already began charging for bags before Monday’s deadline. Other international chains such as Fast Retailing Co.’s Uniqlo and Australia’s Cotton On, which are not included in the new policy, already charge for bags or have banned plastic outright.

“Charging for plastic bags is long overdue,” but it may not be enough to deter consumers, Sumit Agarwal, a professor at the National University of Singapore’s School of Business, wrote in a commentary piece for Channel News Asia in March.

Source: Bloomberg