In 2019, many Vietnamese enterprises successfully developed biodegradable products. Starch-made straws and paper bags are becoming more common.

A young Vietnamese man found a way to make straws from co bang tree (Lepironia articulate), which is common in the Mekong Delta. The straws can be used one time in restaurants and shops, and many times at home.

Hoang Minh Tien, the inventor, said he plans to organize mass production for export.

Nguyen Van Mao in the central region makes bamboo straws which cost several times more than plastic varieties. They can be used for six months with proper preservation.

Consumers, aware of the danger of the use of plastics, have shifted to green products.

Retailers and eateries are reducing their use of plastic products and increasing the use of environmentally friendly products in an effort to ease pressure on the environment.

Supermarkets have made a great contribution to familiarizing consumers with a new habit – using environmentally friendly bags.

They organize ‘green shopping days’, set up specific areas for green product display. Restaurants and cafes have drawn up long-term plans to replace traditional plastic products.

Highlands Coffee has stopped using plastic bags and shifted to use completely biodegradable bags. The Coffee House, Trung Nguyen Legend Café, Cheese Coffee and Starbucks Coffee have replaced disposable plastic straws, bags and spoons with bioproducts.

Schools have also begun saying ‘no’ to plastic products. The HCM City Open University in 2019 decided to spend VND90 million to give a cup and water jug to each officer. Disposable plastic cups and straws have not been used at the school’s meetings since May 5.

To encourage customers to use environmentally friendly bags, especially completely biodegradable ones, retailers often organize promotion programs. VinMart deducts VND1,000 directly from the bills if customers don’t ask for plastic bags.

Big C and An Phat Holdings, which produces AnEco biodegradable products, and several agencies organized Earth Day Compostable in order to minimize the use of disposable plastic bags and encourage the use of biodegradable bags.

Lotte Mart specifically reserves an area for displaying environment friendly products, including bags and utensils fully biodegradable, starch and bamboo straws. It strives to become the first supermarket in Vietnam without plastic bags by 2025.

Big hotels including Daewoo, Lotte, Bao Son Hospital and Vinpearl Resort also use biodegrable bags instead of disposable plastic bags.

Environmentally friendly products are more expensive than traditional plastic products. However, enterprises understand that the benefits they can get will be more sustainable.

Vo Duy Phu, marketing director of The Coffee House, said the coffee chain plans to reduce 80 percent of plastic waste discharged into the environment. 

Thanh Lich

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