Supermarkets to pay recovery share for plastic bags

Aysel Alp - ANKARA

In the new year, the price paid by the citizens for plastic bags will remain constant as 0.25 Turkish Liras, while the supermarkets will now have to pay a recovery share of 0.38 liras to the state for each bag, Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum has announced.

In the meeting held with the sector representatives, the supermarkets demanded the sale price of bags to rise to 0.75 liras in 2023, citing the increased costs, while plastic manufacturers and ministry officials argued that the price would remain the same.

The decision increased the recovery participation share to 0.38 liras with an increase of 54 percent instead of increasing it at the revaluation rate of 122.8 percent, that is, to 0.55 liras.

Reiterating that the paid plastic bag application introduced in 2019 aimed to protect the environment and prevent the waste of bags, Yavuz Eroğlu, the head of the Turkish Plastics Industry Foundation (PAGEV), said supermarkets that made a profit from this application for the first three years will start to lose 0.35 liras for each bag in 2023.