Defra celebrates carrier bag charge success amid packaging reform delays

02 Aug 2023 --- According to the latest Defra figures, “more than seven billion harmful plastic bags have been prevented from blighting [the UK’s] streets and countryside due to the single-use carrier bag charge.” The department claims that since the charge introduction in 2015, usage at the leading retailers has dropped by more than 98%.

“The number of single-use carrier bags reported as sold by the main retailers was 133 million in 2022/23, down from 197 million in 2021/22, representing a reduction of 33%. This is a huge drop from the 7.6 billion used in 2014,” reports Defra.

Furthermore, it says that the average person in England now buys “just two single-use carrier bags a year” compared to around 140 in 2014 before the charge was introduced.

Last year, the government body suggested a “staggering 97%” reduction in single-use plastic bag purchases, which raised questions about the nuances of plastic consumption among green groups and environmental organizations rallying for a more holistic approach to single-use reductions.

Packaging Insights previously reported on the greenwash backlash over the self-proclaimed success of the UK government. “Defra’s data encourages us to pat ourselves on the back as we buy a ‘guilt-free bag for life,’ while the plastic industry laughs and the planet suffers,” Sian Sutherland, A Plastic Planet’s co-founder, told us. 

We speak to Sutherland a year later to find out if changes are visible in the country. According to Sutherland, “very little has changed and in some cases it’s gotten worse.” 

“The reduction in the sales of flimsy but indestructible plastic bags proves why government action is so vitally needed to solve the plastic crisis. It also proves yet again that voluntary commitments from the industry do not work on their own. However there’s a much bigger problem in our supermarkets than just the bag.” According to Defra, the average person in England now buys “just two single-use carrier bags a year.” 

UK playing catch-up?
The Plastic Planet co-founder illustrates that the impact of plastic on human health and the planet is not unknown, yet plastic production has continued to rise year on year.

“We urgently need stronger government policy to help give certainty to industries who are understandably confused as to why it is still legal to sell their customers the wrong thing. Plastic is of course the enabler of our wasteful lifestyles. Reality is the UK are simply playing catch-up as the EU are so far ahead on giving clear guidance on upcoming legislation for eradicating single use systems,” she says.

Meanwhile, UK Environment Minister Rebecca Pow maintains that the carrier bag charge has helped stop billions of single-use carrier bags littering neighborhoods or heading to landfills while ensuring millions of pounds go to good causes including education, arts, heritage, sports, environment, health and charity or volunteering sectors.

“We are determined to do more to tackle plastic pollution at source, with further bans on single-use products starting in October, and our deposit return scheme will cut litter and drive up recycling rates. We continue to encourage all relevant retailers to play their part in further reducing the use of single-use carrier bags,” asserts Pow.

Big fish, small fish
While the government celebrates the success of the carrier bag charge and highlights its actions to “turn the tide on plastic waste,” green groups say that the statistic does not account for the thicker “bags for life,” which require more plastic and are reportedly used by some consumers as single-use items.

The irony lies in the fact that while on the one hand, Defra boasted about its plastic reduction success, the prime minister, on the other hand, announced plans to greenlight hundreds of new oil and gas licenses in the North Sea. 

Moreover, with Defra deferring producer payments under its packaging reforms and multiple deposit return scheme delays, environmentalists question whether the country is doing enough to tackle climate change.

Sutherland concludes: “The thicker plastic bag for life is another problem: 1.5 billion are sold each year, taking the place of their flimsy cousin. None of these are included in the bag reduction claims. A bag for life must mean the 500+ years that plastic will exist and instead we now have an average of 57 per UK household. Where are they all going to end up?”

By Radhika Sikaria