President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky at the Ukraine 30. Ecology forum signed a bill on limiting the circulation of plastic bags on the territory of Ukraine, which the Verkhovna Rada adopted on June 1, into law.
“Five hundred. This is how many packages every Ukrainian uses a year. Twenty minutes. This is how much we use this package on average. More than 100 years. This is how long one package decomposes and a few seconds – to sign a law,” the president said, according to the press service of the head of state.
The document regulates the circulation of plastic bags and should stimulate the development of the production of biodegradable bags.
In particular, the law prohibits the free distribution of plastic bags (except for biodegradable) in retail and catering. Plastic bags should be provided for money only. At the same time, retail prices for such packages cannot be lower than the minimum prices set by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
In addition, mandatory labeling of biodegradable bags is envisaged and fines are set for violating these norms.
The document comes into force on the next day after its publication and will be effective six months from the date of entry into force, with the exception of some of its provisions.
Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada on Tuesday passed at first reading bill No. 3871 amending some Ukrainian laws regarding the ban on the use of palm oil in food. A total of 233 lawmakers backed the document.
The bill proposes amending the Code of Administrative Offenses of Ukraine, the laws on milk and dairy products, on the key principles and requirements to safety and quality of food. The amendments introduce administrative punishment for production and sale of food with palm oil content. It is banned to use palm oil in production of dairy products and food made in Ukraine.
The violation of the law implies a fine from 20 to 100 non-taxable minimum incomes of citizens (UAH 17) imposed on officials. The repeated violation committed during one year after imposing the first fine entails a fine from 100 to 200 non-taxable minimum incomes of citizens.
