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The Chinese government has mandated a broad ban on ultra-thin plastic bags and munch film used in the agriculture sector across the country starting 1 January 2021. The move is in addition to the Five-year plan to reduce the use of single-use non-biodegradable plastic products reported earlier. 

The latest ban once come to effect would prohibit company/individual from producing, distributing, selling, storing of plastic bags under 0.025 millimeters thick and plastic mulch - used to retain moisture in the soil - of less than 0.01 millimeters.

According to industry experts, the ban would cause domestic demand for plastic bags to fall from 1.6 million tons/year currently to about 1.1 million tons.

Chinese plastic manufacturers are now facing more challenges aside from the rising labor costs and hiking raw material prices. Many are looking to diversify product lines to mitigate the impact of the curb. 

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