In January 2023, the "upgraded plastic restriction order" officially took effect nationwide, stipulating that the catering industry nationwide prohibits the use of non-degradable disposable plastic straws; and encourages the active use of degradable lunch boxes and reusable lunch boxes (utensils). After the implementation of the new regulations, what replacements and upgrades have been made in the packaging and tableware of the catering takeaway industry? The reporter visited Beijing.

Beijing: "Plastic restriction order" upgraded, many catering companies start takeaway "change clothes"

In a tea shop in Beijing, the reporter noticed that the main component of the straws in the store is PLA polylactic acid degradable material. The relevant person in charge introduced that compared with paper straws, which are easy to collapse, lack of suction, and strong paper smell that affects the taste during use, the degradable straws currently upgraded in the store are closer to plastic straws in terms of use.

In a Yunnan restaurant, the takeaway manager showed reporters two environmentally friendly lunch boxes specially customized for popular dishes rice noodles and steamed chicken. According to reports, since last year, restaurants have gradually started to replace takeaway boxes with degradable boxes. Considering the problem of high temperature resistance, they have designed and customized the box styles for different dishes and dining scenes.

In addition, under the dual needs of epidemic prevention and festivals, online New Year's Eve dinner reservations are hot, and many businesses have spent some time on the packaging materials of New Year's Eve dinner takeaways. In the New Year's Eve dinner set of another restaurant, the reporter saw that big dishes such as fish head and pancakes were all recycled and sealed and insulated.

The reporter also learned from the supplier that at present, customized packaging that is environmentally friendly and takes into account the dining experience is increasingly favored by businesses.

Gao Wanqin, chairman of Jiangxi Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd.: PLA modified raw materials and these terminal products, such as packaging boxes. Durable polylactic acid products, such as children's tableware, used to be unsellable, but now manufacturers are calling to ask for them. The material should be sold for three to four million a month.

"Plastic ban" has been implemented, and substitutes are popular

Degradable packaging companies are accelerating the layout of the environmental protection track

Under the "upgraded plastic ban", many catering companies have improved customer experience and brand benefits through packaging upgrades. What opportunities does this wave of packaging upgrades for catering takeout bring to companies in the supply chain?

Liu Yunqiao, the person in charge of a packaging company in Beijing, told reporters that since this year, they have received a significant increase in orders for plastic packaging substitutes. Among them, many customers have made additional customized upgrades in packaging design. After the Spring Festival, he plans to continue to increase the production scale of environmentally friendly packaging such as degradable tableware.

Chairman of a packaging company in Beijing: We used to mainly make traditional products, such as knives, forks and spoons, which are basically made of traditional PET materials. Now we use degradable polylactic acid or bamboo knives, forks and spoons to replace this part. We estimate that we may have to achieve an output value of more than 10 million to 20 million for degradable plastics this year, which will account for more than 10% to 20% of our company's overall proportion.

However, due to the generally high cost of environmentally friendly raw materials such as polylactic acid, insufficient upstream supply has caused large price fluctuations. On the one hand, companies face frequent price adjustments, and on the other hand, they have to consider the customer's annual budget, which makes it difficult for companies to grasp their production and operation. To this end, while expanding production capacity, they have also increased research and development of new materials.

It is understood that the implementation of the new version of the "Plastic Restriction Order" has driven many traditional product companies to transform and upgrade to environmental protection fields such as degradable lunch box plastics. Tianyancha Professional Edition data shows that nearly 2,300 new degradable-related companies were added in 2020, an increase of 38% year-on-year. In addition, industry experts said that the upgraded version of the plastic restriction order not only clearly prohibits a batch and replaces a batch, but also encourages the promotion of recyclable packaging and the establishment of a resource recycling supply chain. These are all directions worth expanding for companies in the future.