Japan considering adding charges for plastic convenience store utensils, hotel hangers, and more

I guess my days of plastic spoon-hoarding days are now over.

If there’s one thing folks living in Japan will notice, it’s the amount of plastic involved in everything. From individually wrapped goodies to how almost every convenience store purchase comes with a plastic bag, there seems to be an excess of plastic packaging, which honestly, sometimes doesn’t end up in the right place. In a bid to reduce waste, however, the Japanese government is now looking into the possibility of levying surcharges for specific kinds of plastic products.

▼ It’s gonna be an extra 300 yen for that straw, son.

So far the government is currently deliberating on whether or not consumers will have to pay extra for 12 plastic items. Some of these items are relatively predictable, such as an additional cost for plastic bags. Others include ones we take for granted like convenience store utensils and even laundromat hangers.

Interestingly enough, the government is also considering goods such as hotel room hangers and toothbrushes. So if you’re personally someone who tends to use, or likes to hoard, hotel amenities, keep in mind that that may come at a small cost in the near future.

▼ On the other hand, is there anyone out there who actually finds hotel toothbrushes comfortable to use?

Netizen response to the possible change have ranged from speculative to skeptical with a large number focused on the possibility of non-free convenience store utensils:

“Maybe we can transition to wooden utensils for the convenience store instead?”
“I’m gonna die from impatience if the convo at the conbini cash register goes any farther than ‘Do you need a bag?'”
“Soon we’ll enter an era where we bring our own toothbrush and toothpaste to hotels…”
“Even though it’s COVID-19 times, it feels like we’re making in-store transactions longer.”

Though nothing is set in stone, next week the Japanese government will be conducting a hearing to gain insight from professionals within the industry as well as specialists. In the meantime, reduce, reuse, and recycle, especially your Gundam model kits.

Source: TV Asahi via Golden Times
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Insert images: Pakutaso (1, 2)
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