Alliance of retailers seeks to change consumer behaviour
An alliance of retailers who have pledged to reduce single-use plastic bags (the Plastic Alliance) has launched campaigns to encourage people to use environmentally-friendly products.
The Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment (ISPONRE) under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE), in coordination with Hanoi's Department of Industry and Trade (DoIT), called on enterprises to sign up to the commitment related to plastic waste reduction. It is part of the “Rethinking Plastics - Circular Economy Solutions to Marine Litter in Vietnam” project funded by the European Union (EU) and the German Government, and carried out by the French Agency for International Technical Cooperation (Expertise France).
A survey by the institute showed that up to 104,000 single-use plastic bags are used at supermarkets each day, equivalent to 38 million bags a year.
Nguyen Trung Thang, Deputy Director of ISPONRE, said the Plastic Alliance gathers 16 retailers and has stepped up communication efforts aimed at encouraging and creating favourable conditions for residents to replace non-biodegradable plastic bags with eco-friendly bags.
Fanny Quertamp, senior advisor of Expertise France in Vietnam, said concerns were raised at the beginning of the project because the perception was it would be difficult to change people’ behaviour, especially when plastic bags are free and some supermarkets are afraid of losing customers. However, it proved to be effective thanks to the participation of DoIT and active support from the alliance members, she said.
According to Kim Thi Thuy Ngoc, head of the Science and International Cooperation Department under ISPONRE, communication activities play an important role in changing people's behaviour in shifting away from the use of single-use and non-biodegradable plastics to eco-friendly alternatives.
Government policies relating to the production, import and use of nylon bags also contribute to reducing consumption of these products.
She cited a project on strengthening the management of plastic waste in Vietnam as an example. The project, which was started by MoNRE and has been approved by the Prime Minister, targets the use of 100% environmentally-friendly plastic bags and packaging at shopping malls and supermarkets in the country by 2025.
Other goals include collecting, reusing, recycling and treating 85% of plastic waste. It intends to reduce the volume of plastic waste dumped into oceans by half; and completely cut plastic waste from tourism complexes, hotels and other lodging facilities.
A government decree dated January 1, 2022 guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Environmental Protection stipulated that the manufacturing and importing of non-biodegradable nylon bags with dimensions less than 50cm x 50cm and film thickness of less than 50 micrometres will be stopped from January 1, 2026. The production and import of single-use plastic products and non-biodegradable plastic packaging will also be banned from December 31, 2030.
