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SINGAPORE: It began with one day a month — but soon, consumers here may have to pack their own shopping bags along more often, perhaps even once a week.
The National Environment Agency (NEA) is considering increasing the frequency of Bring Your Own Bag Day (BYOBD), having received feedback that shoppers would welcome this move.
According to an NEA survey, more shoppers have become aware of the BYOB initiative since it launched six months ago, with about 60 per cent supporting the campaign by bringing their own bags, making donations for plastic bags, buying reusable bags, or refusing plastic bags for small items.
Significantly, 67 percent of respondents "even commented that the campaign could be carried out more frequently", said NEA chief executive Lee Yuen Hee.
An NEA spokesperson told TODAY it was "exploring" a weekly BYOBD. Currently, this falls on the first Wednesday of every month and yesterday marked the ninth instance.
"We are in constant consultation with retailers and they are generally quite keen on the idea," the spokesperson added. No timeframe was given, as discussions are ongoing.
In response to queries, a spokesperson for supermarket chain NTUC FairPrice said: "Over the past few months, we observed that many customers have made an effort to bring their own shopping bags to bag their groceries."
FairPrice stores have cut down the use of plastic bags by between 30 percent and 80 percent on BYOBD. The chain has also sold more than 60,000 reusable bags. And in July, FairPrice launched a Green Reward Scheme where shoppers who use their own bags on any day of the week get a 10-cent rebate if they spend at least $10.
Joining the more than 200 participating retailers in the BYOBD initiative yesterday was local bookstore chain Popular Book Company, which launched a line of reusable bags.
"We aim to encourage our shoppers to be more environmentally-friendly by bringing their own reusable bags for their purchases and reducing the request for plastic bags," said director of retail operations Yeo Kar Han.
On BYOBD, shoppers who do not bring their own bags can buy reusable bags from participating supermarkets and hypermarkets, or choose to make a 10-cent donation for each plastic bag taken at the checkout counter.
Donations are channelled to the Singapore Environment Council.
- TODAY/so
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