- cross-posted to:
- environment
- worldnews@lemmy.ml
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excellent
Good! The amount of plastic waste that comes with retail produce is absurd. From the thin plastic bags to things being individually wrapped with plastic and foam.
Cost saving measures for big companies sold as environmentalism.
Meanwhile everything you buy from a supermarket comes in plastic packaging.
If they were serious they’d ban single use disposable plastic drink bottles. Think about how much plastic is used just to package some biscuits.
Recently did some work in a well to do school at exam time here in UK. Every single student had a bottle on their desk. Out of a hall full one morning, I counted less than a dozen reusable ones. The school canteen sold single use bottles over the counter and there were a couple of machines full of them for when the canteen was closed.
I was absolutely disgusted. They didn’t even see the irony of their posters and artwork telling all and sundry how we need to protect the earth and its inhabitants.
All large shops in England have been legally required to charge for single-use plastic shopping bags since 2015 - a move that has seen bags drop by mor then 95 per cent, according to the government. The legal charge was initially a minimum of 5p, but this was raised to 10p in May 2021 in a bid to further reduce usage.
Doesn’t this approach risk promoting elitism by wealth? Past a given income level that fixed overhead becomes irrelevant.
So those on a lower income, who are more cost-sensitive, are made to be more responsible for reaching pollution-limiting targets than the wealthy.
I prefer the level-playing field better I think (if only we were applying that to more things here).
Doesn’t this approach risk promoting elitism by wealth? Past a given income level that fixed overhead becomes irrelevant.
So those on a lower income, who are more cost-sensitive, are made to be more responsible for reaching pollution-limiting targets than the wealthy.
I would have thought so too, anytime I’ve been shopping though, but the amount of people that pay for bags is ridiculous. Especially the ‘lower income’ shoppers. You would think they would be more careful. Another example is that I used to live in an area where a lot of the residents were on benefits. On bin day (or any other day come to think of it) there were always lots of Lidl/Asda/Aldi/Tesco bags outside or by the bins. Lots of takeaway pizza boxes, bottled water etc. as well. I was in full time work and I couldn’t (and wouldn’t) spend money on bags etc.
There was a Waitrose on my way into work that I’d pop into now and again - the hoorays in there tended to use more of their own bags than those I’d see in Lidl. OK they were fancy Waitrose ones to sit in the back of the Range Rover but they would use more of their own than ‘shop ones’.
Make the bags £2.50 each or better still make them paper again.
Well done, Kiwis.