NL: Free plastic bags banned as of 1 January 2016

On 26 February 2015 state secretary Mansveld sent a letter to the Dutch House about the plans concerning reducing the amount of carrier bags. She states that reducing the amount of carrier bags offered to consumers gives the greatest environmental gain. Work will be done on developing a communication policy and free plastic bags shall be forbidden.
The ban is to take effect on 1 January 2016 and will apply to all free plastic bags that are provided at the checkout. An exception will be made for plastic bags that are necessary because of their functionality and for food safety reasons. Whether an exception will also be made for biobased or biodegrable bags is still to be determined.
Click here for the letter (in Dutch).
With NVC MERGE (Members-only Environmental Regulations Guide) you can stay up-to-date with the environmental requirements for your packaging. MERGE is exclusively for NVC members and there are no costs involved.
Click here for more information about the NVC E-Workshop Sustainable Innovation in Packaging.

If you have any questions about this subject, please contact us: info@nvc.nl, +31-(0)182-512411. This item is also included in our monthly overview, the NVC Members-only Update.