What are the most sustainable bag options in Japan?

Japan is known for its excessive plastic waste. Food products often come with more plastic packaging than in other countries. Fruits and snacks, in particular, are wrapped in layers of plastic, with individual pieces being individually plastic-wrapped on top of the regular plastic packaging. Plastic shopping bags have also been an issue, and stores have been quick to offer them even for single items.

Recently, Japan has made steps to curb plastic bag waste. In 2020, the country started requiring stores to charge for plastic bags to reduce their usage. However, experts have doubts about the positive impact of the measure, since plastic shopping bags only make up about 2% of the plastic waste in Japan . Japanese businesses have begun using paper and biodegradable plastic options in response.

Environmental burden of cotton and paper bag production

One possible effect is encouraging the use of reusable bags, but just how much of a difference does that make? While plastic bags and other waste cause problems such as marine pollution, their initial environmental impact is actually lower than reusable bags, which take many more resources to create. Even compared to paper bags, plastic bags come out ahead in terms of environmental burden when they are first produced.

Studies have shown that plastic bag production uses less fuel and water and emitted fewer greenhouse gases than paper bag production. Cotton reusable bags fare even worse in terms of environmental burden, considering the amount of agricultural resources required to create them. Non-disposable plastic bags, such as plastic totes made from non-woven polypropylene, have less impact and can be reused many times.

Japan’s challenges around shopping bags

Disposable plastic bags have the opposite problem as they create excessive waste after use. They can be recycled but are often not because of their lightweight, which is problematic during the recycling process. Japan mostly collects plastic to use for thermal recycling to generate energy rather than reusing the plastic itself.

Plastic does have its benefits, including being more virus resistant. One issue with reusable bags is that people do not often wash them, making them breeding grounds for viruses and bacteria, especially when carrying spoilable foods. Washing these bags also takes up energy and water resources. Another potential problem with tote bags is simply buying more than you need. Some brands can be cheap enough that consumers may use them with the same carelessness as disposable plastic bags. For example, eco-bags from popular Japanese stores Uniqlo and Muji are cheap and plentiful, costing only a few hundred yen each.

This is not to say that we should stop using reusable bags, only that seemingly simple choices can be more complex than first thought. If you want to reduce your environmental impact, reducing your general waste is more important than anything, regardless of whether it is plastic or other materials. It takes many uses of eco-bags to match or improve on the impact of disposable plastic bags. Therefore, the best way to reduce your carbon footprint regarding these items is to really commit to their use. The use of plastic bags and reusable bags is just one small example of the complexities of the challenges in combating waste.