UAE: Single-use plastic bag consumption drops 80%, say retailers

UAE: Single-use plastic bag consumption drops 80%, say retailers

Impact on nationwide ban on single-use plastic in 2024 will have positive impact on reducing consumption, say traders

Published: Wed 11 Jan 2023, 6:27 PM

UAE retailers have recorded an 80 per cent drop in single-use bags consumption since Dubai and Abu Dhabi announced 25 fils charge on such bags in the middle of last year.

This comes as the UAE government on Tuesday announced a blanket on single-use plastic bags in the country from January 2024, giving the retailers and other companies time to prepare for convenient and price-conscious alternative options to shoppers in the country.

In Abu Dhabi, a ban on single-use plastics went into effect on June 1, while in Dubai, since July 1, retailers have been charging 25 fils per bag.

From January 1, 2024, there will be a blanket ban on single-use plastics across the UAE.

“Since July 2022, we have seen a decrease in the use of plastic bags by more than 70 per cent across our stores. We believe the impact of the nationwide ban on single-use plastic in 2024, will have a positive impact on reducing plastic consumption whilst encouraging sustainable shopping behaviours,” said Christophe Orcet, head of commercial and operations of Carrefour UAE at Majid Al Futtaim