This July 26, 2021 photo shows disposable tableware for takeaway orders at a restaurant in Tseung Kwan O, Hong Kong. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)

Hong Kong's Legislative Council on Wednesday passed a bill for regulating disposable plastic tableware and other plastic products, proposing to implement the first-phase regulation from April 22 next year.

The Product Eco-responsibility (Amendment) Bill 2023 bans the local sale of nine types of disposable plastic tableware and also prohibits catering premises from providing customers with such products, with the implementation carried out in two phases.

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The nine types of products are: expanded polystyrene tableware, straws, stirrers, cutlery (forks, knives and spoons), plates, cups, cup lids, food containers and food container covers.

The sale of expanded polystyrene tableware and four other types of disposable plastic tableware that are small in size and difficult to recycle or to which there are mature alternatives will be banned in the first-phase regulation. 

The products whose sale will be banned are: expanded polystyrene tableware, straws, stirrers, cutlery (forks, knives and spoons), plates, cups, cup lids, food containers and food container covers

The provision of such tableware to takeaway customers will also be prohibited, according to a government statement.

The provision of all nine types of disposable plastic tableware to dine-in customers at catering premises will be outlawed.

In the second phase, for all nine types of products, the ban will be expanded to cover the sale to end-customers as well as the provision at catering premises to both dine-in and takeaway customers, the statement adds.

Other plastic products

The bill also regulates the manufacture, sale and distribution of a series of disposable plastic products in two phases.

In the first phase, the sale and provision of cotton buds, balloon sticks, inflatable cheer sticks, glow sticks, party hats, oxo-degradable plastic products, umbrella bags, food sticks and plastic toothpicks will be prohibited.

At the same time, hotels and guesthouses will not be permitted to provide disposable toiletries and in-room plastic-bottled water for free, while distributing non-medical use transparent gloves and plastic-packaged tissue paper for promotional use will also be banned.

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The manufacture, sale and free distribution of oxo-degradable plastics products will also be prohibited, said the government.

To allow the trade to get prepared, we will commence the first-phase regulation around six months after the passage of the Amendment Bill.

Spokesman, Environment and Ecology Bureau, HKSAR

In the second phase, the special administrative region government will stop allowing the sale and free distribution of multipack rings, table cloths and plastic stemmed dental floss or the free distribution of ear plugs.

To allow the trade to get prepared, the Environment and Ecology Bureau proposes the implementation of the first-phase regulation to take effect from April 22 next year, which is Earth Day, said a spokesman for the Environment and Ecology Bureau. 

“The timing of implementing the second-phase regulation will depend on the availability and affordability of the relevant non-plastic or reusable alternatives, and it is tentatively set for 2025. We encourage the trade to get prepared early for the relevant control measures, and jointly build a plastic-free culture.”

The effective date will depend on the availability and affordability of the relevant non-plastic or reusable alternatives.

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To facilitate the trade’s adoption of non-plastic tableware, the Environmental Protection Department has commissioned the Quality Assurance Agency to set up the Green Tableware Platform for reference by the food and beverage trade, tableware suppliers and the public. 

A diner picks plastic straws at a restaurant in Tseung Kwan O, Hong Kong, on July 26, 2021. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)

Currently, over 400 non-plastic disposable tableware products are listed on the platform, which also provides information on tableware rental and cleaning services to encourage restaurants to adopt reusable tableware.

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The department is also establishing an information platform on disposable plastics to share with the public the characteristics and the pros and cons of different alternatives for them to make well-informed choices.

In September, the department also launched the Bring Your Own Containers Eateries Scheme to encourage citizens to develop the good habit of bringing their own containers when ordering takeaways. There are now more than 350 participating restaurants.