It's in with the new year and out with single-use plastic bags at New Zealand supermarkets.
Foodstuffs stopped providing the plastic checkout bags on New Year's Eve, meaning they're no longer available at New World, Pak'nSave, Four Square and Liquorland stores.
Countdown supermarkets pulled single-use plastic bags from their checkout counters in October.
The chain made the move after the Government confirmed it would ban single-use bags from July 2019.
Now all major supermarkets have stopped plastic bags six months ahead of the deadline and made reusable bags available to shoppers instead.
Meanwhile, all soft plastics are now going to landfill due to a massive backlog in recycling.
The Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme chairperson Malcolm Everts told RNZ late last month that overseas processing had shut down and Kiwis have been collecting more plastic than can be recycled in New Zealand.
Two local firms are increasing their recycling production, but suspending collections of soft plastics for the summer would give the scheme time to build capacity.
While many councils do not collect plastic bags and soft plastic wrappers, stores that were accepting them would stop on December 31.
The scheme, that turns soft plastics into items such as plastic fence posts and ducting, will start again in April.
The removal of single use carrier bags from all New Zealand supermarkets from 1 January would help reduce plastic volumes, Mr Everts said.
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