The Final Note The planet wins hands down
It has been 12 months since the 5p bag charge was introduced into England. Similar schemes have been operating in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland for several years now, but has this charge made any difference to the wholesale supply of blank bags?
P&P editor Melanie Attlesey finds out. T
he aim of the 5p bag charge is to reduce the use of single-use plastic carrier bags by encouraging customers to re-use plastic carrier bags or to use bags for life. According to
www.gov.uk, in 2014 over 7.6bn single-use plastic bags were handed out to customers by major supermarkets in England, which equates to 140 bags per person or 61,000 tonnes in total. This figure dropped to 1.1bn bags in the first six months after the introduction of the scheme last October. It is estimated during the same six month period that £29.2m was donated to good causes, such as the environment, education, health, arts or charitable organisations directly as a result of the 5p charge.
It is expected that over the next 10 years the benefits of the
scheme will include: l An expected overall benefit of over £780m to the UK economy. l Up to £730m raised for good causes. l £60m savings in litter clean-up costs. l Carbon savings of £13m.
A win-win situation
But as a result of the 5p charge are wholesale suppliers of blank bags seeing a boost to their business? Roger McHugh, owner of Beechfield Brands, which incorporates bag brand Westford Mill, says yes. He explains: “Sales of Westford Mill bags have rapidly grown in the past few years due to consumersʼ own environmental awareness as well as charging for plastic bags already being introduced in some of the other countries where we have a
presence, for example Germany and Ireland. This rate of growth increased further once the UK government introduced the charge.” Westford Mill is perhaps the European market leader when it comes to supplying bags for life; something which Roger says is down to availability and depth of the range. Roger adds: “The whole range is available from the leading distributors and we now have a multitude of options for printers to decorate and sell on to retailers. From classic inexpensive promo items through to heavy canvas bags in organic cotton and Fairtrade options; Westford Mill has all bases covered. “Many of our bags are sold blank for consumers to use as they are, but also many are decorated to advertise the retailerʼs own name. Whereas plastic bag production is subject to relatively high minimums, cotton bags can be cost-effectively printed from a single piece upwards. Equally, the range of base colours that we have in Westford Mill now extends to over 40. This means that we have we have the right colour, or group of colours for every situation. This kind of flexibility is simply not available without prohibitive minimums in plastic bag production.” So is it little wonder that customers are turning their backs on single-use carrier bags when there are so many alternative options available to them. This is also a great market for garment and promotional product decorators to tap into. The introduction of the charge has done wonders for the United Kingdom. And as Roger, concludes: “So yes, the planet is a hands down winner in this, but so are printers, retailers and consumers alike. Itʼs a true win-win situation for everyone involved.”
| 86 | October 2016
www.printwearandpromotion.co.uk
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