Kaufland, the first retailer to charge for single-use plastic bags | Progresiv
0.10 RON - this is the cost of biodegradable compostable bags from the fruit and vegetable aisles of Kaufland hypermarkets. It is a step by which the retailer wants to help reduce pollution. 
"From October 1, 2019, Kaufland is launching for the first time an approach that aims to change a strong custom rooted among all customers: the waste of disposable bags. We aim to change the habits of consumption that harm the environment”, says Valer Hancas, Director of Communication and Corporate Affairs Kaufland Romania.
25 million tonnes of plastic waste are produced in Europe annually. Only 30% of this amount is collected for recycling. According to a Nielsen study, we produce more plastic than the cumulative weight of humanity. That is 322 million tons of plastic compared to 316 million tons as humanity weighs.
“Being offered for free for so long, we have consolidated the habit of considering single-use bags worthless and therefore to overuse them, to waste them, without thinking that they have an environmental impact. We generate a lot of waste and it's time to change our shopping habits. If we do not change the way plastic is produced and used, by 2050 the oceans will contain more plastic than fish”, adds Valer Hancas.
An European generates an average of 31 kilograms of plastic packaging waste and uses 200 disposable bags a year. Only one of them gets to be recycled at European level. And disposable plastic is the most polluting. A hundred billion of plastic bags are used annually in the EU. On average, a bag we take from the fruit and vegetable aisle is only used for 12 minutes, then reaches the waste bin. According to the Kaufland study, 8 out of 10 respondents use plastic bags for weighing fruits and vegetables and only 7% say they do not use bags at all.
In addition to biodegradable bags, Kaufland Romania has also listed a special alternative for customers: reusable bags for weighing products from the vegetable-fruit district. Estimates show that by introducing these measures in stores, the amount of disposable plastic, non-recyclable, is reduced by 40 tons of packaging / month.
