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Yum China, operator of KFC and Pizza Hut, vows to cut harmful plastic packaging by almost a third

  • Yum China Holdings, one of the China’s largest restaurant operators, is aiming to cut its use of environmentally harmful plastics in the next five years by shifting to paper straws and biodegradable packaging.
  • The overall aim is to achieve a 30 per cent reduction in non-degradable plastic packaging by weight through initiatives that will help China become a more sustainable society

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A block of compressed plastic bottles at a plastic waste centre on the outskirts of Beijing on May 16, 2018. Photo: AFP

Yum China Holdings, one of China’s largest restaurant operators, is aiming to cut its use of environmentally harmful plastics by almost a third in the next five years by shifting to paper straws and biodegradable packaging.

It intends to phase out non-degradable plastic bags and cutlery at all its KFC restaurants in mainland China by the end of 2025, and eliminate non-degradable bags from its Pizza Hut chain by the end of 2022.
The overall aim is to achieve a 30 per cent reduction in non-degradable plastic packaging by weight via a series of initiatives that will help China, the biggest producer of plastic waste on the planet, to become a more sustainable society.
“As a result of these initiatives, Yum China expects a reduction of approximately 8,000 tons in non-degradable plastics annually starting from 2021,” said the New York- and Hong Kong-listed company.

This will be achieved by replacing existing plastic packaging with paper straws, paper bags, and biodegradable plastic bags.

This is a big undertaking, considering the Shanghai-based firm has already cut its use of paper by about 8,000 tons and plastic packaging by 1,000 tons, according to its latest sustainability report.

Starting from this month, all KFC restaurants in mainland China will stop using plastic straws, and over 90 per cent of them will replace disposable plastic cutlery with wooden cutlery for dine-in and takeaway.

In addition, non-degradable plastic bags used for delivery and takeaway in over half of its KFC restaurants will be replaced with paper bags or biodegradable plastic bags.

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