What European country uses the most plastic bags per capita?

Lithuania uses the most lightweight plastic carrier bags per person in the European Union, at 249.3 on average in 2022, according to new data from Eurostat.

Other countries to use a high number of lightweight plastic carrier bags (less than 50 microns) include Latvia (192.6 bags per person), Czechia (185.5 bags), Cyprus (162.4 bags) and Bulgaria (131.6 bags).

In Lithuania, Latvia and Czechia, the majority of this consumption relates to very lightweight plastic carrier bags – such as those used for packing fruits and vegetables – of less than 15 microns.

Of the countries for which data is available, Belgium used just 3.9 plastic bags per person in 2022, the lowest level in the European Union. Other countries to report low plastic bag usage include Poland (6.6 bags per person), Portugal (13.2 bags per person) and Austria (14.2 bags per person).

European Union average

In 2022, the average consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags per person in the EU was 66.6 bags, reflecting a reduction of 10.8 bags, or 14%, compared to the previous year.

Across the EU, this decline translated to a total of 29.8 billion of said bags, a decrease of 4.7 billion bags compared 2021.

All countries in the EU have now implemented consumption reduction measures as mandated by the Plastic Bags Directive, which sets a target to reduce lightweight plastic carrier bag usage to a maximum of 40 bags per person by the end of 2025. This target excludes very lightweight plastic carrier bags.

‘The variation in per capita consumption is mainly due to differences in the effectiveness of measures, influenced by economic, social and policy factors,’ Eurostat noted. ‘Additionally, some countries implemented consumption reduction measures during 2018–2022, while others had them in place for a longer period. A third factor is the use of different calculation methods across EU countries.’ Read more here.

Lightweight plastic bag usage per EU country, per capita (2022)

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