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UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown campaign for green bags to reduce the number of plastic bags used by shoppers and tailors.
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Kolkata,
January 10, 2008: It’s disgrace for Indian jute industry and also the Union government. No less a personality than the UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown campaign for green bags to reduce the number of plastic bags used by shoppers and tailors.
What is more, he spoke for reusable jute bags and said: “Nearly 20% of all the rubbish put out by typical household is packaging waste and for the entire country, it adds up to 10 million tonne every year. In fact, retailers need to do more to reduce needless packaging and we all should do more to reduce the number of shopping bags we use.”
All these only indicate that there exists a vast and untapped market in developed countries worldwide and Indian jute millowners and exporters are either unaware of it or are unable to produce world-class eco-friendly jute shopping bags, so to say. No effective and result-oriented promotional campaign has yet been taken up by the jute industry or the government to promote jute bags.
Participation in international fairs and exhibitions on jute and other packaging materials by different official agencies and bureaucrat-led jute delegations, it appears, are more for enjoyment and traveling/marketing than real promotion and development of jute and jute products.
Mr Brown’s backing of eco-friendly bags or agro-based jute bags shows what Indian jute bag manufacturers should have done long back. In fact, the UK premier praised the city of Exeter in UK which has taken a lead in Green Shoppers’ campaign by encouraging individuals and retailers to take action that really makes a difference. The campaign aims at cutting plastic bag usage by encouraging shoppers to use eco-friendly alternatives to poly carrier bags.
It is estimated that nearly 10,000 eco-friendly bags will be in use by next month in Exeter and the campaign, which also features a Christmas competition for kids to design green bags, may save at least 8 million plastic bags by next year.
However, there is no eagerness and sincerity among Indian jute bag producers to manufacture standard jute bags including shopping bags with acceptable design and eco-labelling. Nor is there any effort to earn carbon credits. No one knows how long the domestic jute industry and the Centre would take to make the sector thrive.
Source: The Economic Times
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