Sustainability stats: Plastic bag charge in numbers

From Monday (5 October), England will officially adopt the levy currently used by the rest of the UK which charges consumers for the use of single-use carrier bags in shops and supermarkets.


The 5p plastic bag levy will be introduced nationwide by the Government and will be compulsory for businesses that employ 250 or more full-time employees and sell or deliver goods in England.

Scotland and Wales have already operated with the levy in place and have not only seen a huge decrease in demand for plastic bags, but have also been able to announce annual economic boosts as a result.

Here at edie, we’ve crunched the numbers to give you the essential stats behind the plastic menace plaguing our shops, homes and streets.

Carrier bag tax: Infographic

Business money-saving organisation Make It Cheaper recently conducted a survey into customer attitudes towards the charge to alleviate hesitations, and highlighted the benefits that the charge can provide businesses – backed up by some of the above stats – with the below infographic…

Matt Mace

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