Chile becomes first Latin American country to ban plastic bags

Any form of plastic bags other than those constituting primary packaging “necessary for hygiene or to prevent food wastage” is prohibited.

Large businesses have six months to phase out the use of plastic bags, while smaller ones will be given two years to adapt to the new rules.

In the meantime the shops will only be allowed to hand out two carrier bags per customer

Chile uses more than 3.4 billon plastic bags a year, which translates to almost 200 bags per person annually.