"From June 1, 2008, the production, sale and use of plastic shopping bags with a thickness of less than 0.025 mm will be banned nationwide. A paid use system for plastic shopping bags will be implemented in commodity retail outlets, and plastic shopping bags shall not be provided free of charge. Those who continue to produce ultra-thin plastic shopping bags in violation of regulations, or fail to affix (print) qualified plastic shopping bag product marks as required, and those who commit other illegal and irregular acts shall be punished in accordance with the "Product Quality Law" and other laws and regulations, such as orders to stop production, confiscate illegally produced products, confiscate illegal income, and impose fines."

In March 2008, my country's "Plastic Restriction Order" was issued, and ultra-thin plastic bags were the first to be banned, becoming the first daily plastic category to be banned. After being banned for 16 years, although ultra-thin plastic bags have stopped being used in regular supermarkets, they are still widely used in some small shops and vendors.

Reporters found in Taiyuan, Shanxi, Handan, Hebei, Linyi, Shandong, and other places that ultra-thin disposable plastic bags are widely used in vegetable markets, small shops, and vendors. In some villages and towns, this type of plastic bag is still the main shopping bag.

Where do these plastic bags that have been explicitly banned come from? Reporters investigated multiple online sales channels and went to the offline Beijing Xinfadi Wholesale Market. In the hotel supplies wholesale market and the Central Wholesale Market, reporters did not find any public sellers of ultra-thin plastic bags. The owner of a lunch box packaging store in the Central Wholesale Market told reporters, "These plastic bags are very cheap and do not make money. We can't be reported and fined for making three or two yuan from you." In contrast, ultra-thin plastic bags on e-commerce platforms are "easy to get."

When reporters searched for "ultra-thin plastic bags" or "vest handbags" on an e-commerce platform, the banned ultra-thin plastic bags appeared in large numbers. The reporter randomly selected stores with shipping addresses in Foshan, Quanzhou, and Wuhan, and bought three products of different sizes after paying 1.1 yuan, 2 yuan, and 11.1 yuan respectively. One of the products even directly indicated that the thickness was 1.8 filaments, equivalent to 0.018 mm, which is lower than the thickness standard of 0.025 mm in the "plastic ban".

"Every time I go to the supermarket or the vegetable market, I remind myself to bring my old plastic bags, but I always forget. In the end, the plastic bags bought at home are increasing, and they are finally thrown away." On April 14, at the door of a supermarket in Beijing, Mr. Wang, who had just finished shopping, seemed a little helpless. Many people have similar experiences to Mr. Wang. Few people ask about the price of plastic bags, nor do they care whether they are degradable. More people are "indifferent".

The reason why everyone is indifferent to plastic bags is mainly due to the low price. Ms. Wu from Nanjing, Jiangsu, told reporters that the Yonghui Supermarket where she often shopped sells plastic bags for 1 yuan each, and she would definitely buy bags when she had a lot of things. "The price of plastic bags has little effect on regulating my consumption habits, because supermarket shopping bags are also cheap, so I always forget to bring bags with me when I go out, and I can use them as garbage bags when I take them home. Now, almost all the garbage bags at home are shopping bags. If the bags are very expensive, about 5 yuan, then everyone will definitely remember to take bags from home."

The reporter searched on the e-commerce platform and found that a PE plastic bag that meets the standards, purchased in bulk, has a unit price ranging from 10 cents to 30 cents according to size specifications. In ordinary supermarkets, a large plastic bag will not be charged more than 1 yuan. Although this charge is not low compared to its production cost, it is often negligible compared to the goods in the supermarket. Therefore, the feelings of ordinary consumers are also different. Mr. Wang told reporters frankly that it was not because the bag cost a few cents that he was unwilling to pay, but because of his understanding of environmental protection.

Compared with the original intention of policy formulation, a few cents can no longer prevent people from choosing to use plastic bags. The reporter learned from the interview that another reason why plastic bags are still used even if they are charged is their convenience. Many times when you go shopping in the supermarket, you can only choose plastic bags that are charged.

The plastic ban is not just about plastic bags. Currently, many daily plastic products have been included in the scope of prohibition and restriction. In January 2020, my country launched the second version of the "Plastic Ban". Compared with the first version, the new decree not only bans plastic, but also puts forward requirements for plastic restrictions. At the same time, the scope has been expanded to prohibit and restrict non-degradable plastic bags, disposable plastic tableware, disposable plastic products in hotels, and express plastic packaging in different ranges and time periods.