These Fruits and Veggies Will No Longer Be Wrapped in Plastic Here

France’s ban on plastic packaging for fresh fruits and vegetables came into force on the first day of 2022, and its law against overwrapping could inspire other countries to follow in its footsteps.

As the country wants to take the lead to phase out single-use plastic completely by 2040, President Emmanuel Macron calls the ban imposed on plastic packaging of fresh produce “a real revolution” and one of the curbs on the “outrageous amount of single-use plastic in our daily lives.”

A total of 30 types of products such as carrots, apples, bananas, and cucumbers won’t come in plastic wrapping anymore. Small and fragile items like cherry tomatoes and berries will be exempt – as are packs over 1.5 kg and chopped or processed fruits. Producers for these items have until 2026 to find alternatives to plastic for their packaging. In 2021, an estimated 37% of produce was sold in plastic packaging in France alone, and the ban should cut over a billion items made of single-use plastic in a single year. An Ifop poll conducted for World Wildlife Fund France in 2019 revealed that 85% of the population is all for implementing a ban on single-use plastic products and packaging. Spain will follow in France’s footsteps and impose a ban on plastic packaging in 2023.