Metro, one of the world's largest retailers, has announced it has stopped supplying plastic bags in its 38 retail sites in China.
Metro China says that it is stopping the sale of plastic bags in all of its 38 retail shops in China to support the Chinese government's efforts in protecting the environment. As early as in 1996 when Metro set up its first retailing shop in China it began to charge for plastic bags in an effort to encourage consumers to reduce the use of this environmentally-unfriendly article.
According to a representative for Metro China, one year after the Chinese government's plastic ban, people in China have more awareness of the environment and more and more of them have begun to take their own recyclable shopping bags when shopping, so it is timely for Metro to take the action now.
It is understood that after stopping the sale of plastic bags, Metro will provide cardboard boxes and cotton or jute shopping bags to meet its customers' needs.
