Petition · past parliament

Replace small plastic bags for loose food products with brown paper ones

Closed 9,065 signatures

What the petition asks

By 2050 there will be more plastic in our oceans than fish. We therefore call on the Government to make compulsory changes within all UK supermarkets for the removal of small plastic bags used for loose food products such as fruit, veg, and baked goods and instead, reintroduce brown paper ones.
There are 1 trillion plastic bags made each year with each one taking up to 1000 years to fully decompose, and an even larger figure of 3.95 trillion bags ending up in the world's oceans annually. Brown paper bags, on the other hand, have a degradable period of 1 month and are 100% natural and renewable. With over 100,000 marine creatures dying a year from plastic pollution and over 1 million seabirds, we are certain that this small change will make a big difference.

Timeline

15 Jan 2018 Petition opened for signatures
15 Jul 2018 Closed to new signatures

Key facts

Signatures 9,065
Status Closed
Opened 15 Jan 2018
Closed 15 Jul 2018

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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.