Disposable plastic cups banned in Hong Kong and Taiwan beverage shops
Beverage stores in New Taipei City, Taiwan, banned the use of disposable plastic cups, including PLA cups made of biodegradable plastics, from May 1. Violators can be fined up to NT$6,000, and those who fail to complete the deadline can be fined continuously on a daily basis. On the first day of the implementation of the policy, the inspectors of the Environmental Protection Bureau randomly checked 147 beverage stores, all of which met the regulations.
Taiwan's Taoyuan City cooperates with the plastic reduction policy. Starting from July 1, beverage stores within its jurisdiction are not allowed to provide disposable plastic beverage cups. The Taoyuan City Environmental Protection Bureau appeals to the public to bring their own environmentally friendly containers or choose to use Taoyuan Recycling Cups when purchasing hand-shaken drinks, and work together to reduce plastic and protect the environment. According to the Environmental Protection Bureau, there are currently about 989 beverage stores in Taoyuan City, and the implementation is estimated to reduce the use of more than 72.6 million plastic cups in one year.
Taiwan's Taichung City Environmental Protection Bureau announced on May 3 that from October 1, beverage stores in Taichung will not be able to provide disposable plastic beverage cups (including PLA cups made of biodegradable plastics). Anyone who violates the regulations may be fined NT$1,200 to NT$6,000. The Environmental Protection Agency pointed out that after the implementation of the estimated policy, the use of 106 million plastic cups can be reduced a year.
On May 1, a coffee shop in the Sha Tin area of Hong Kong used recirculating cups to buy coffee. To encourage consumers to use recycle cups instead of disposable drinking cups, there will be a HK$5 discount for using recycle cups.
