From November it will be illegal for Victorian retailers to supply customers with single-use plastic bags, after the Andrews Government introduced new laws to tackle plastic waste earlier this week.

The reforms are yet to pass, but should the ban come into effect soon, it will give businesses – and shoppers – less than four months to prepare.

The ban will apply to all retailers, including supermarkets, fashion boutiques, fast food outlets, convenience stores and service stations,

Victoria uses over a billion plastic bags each year, most of which end up in landfill.

The announcement will leave NSW as the only state without its own single-use plastic bag ban.

“Plastic pollution is a significant environmental problem – the actions we take now will help ensure Victoria has a clean and bright future,” Victorian Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio said in a statement.

“The feedback on this one was clear. Victorians want to do more to protect the environment from the damage litter causes and are overwhelmingly supportive of banning single-use plastic shopping bags.”

Businesses have until the end of October to use up current single-use bag stocks and organise an alternative solution.

Woolworths and Coles recently phased out single-use plastic bags. A wave of customer anger followed. Most of this anger, according to some, was because shoppers felt supermarkets were profiting off selling 10c and 15c bags.

Experts say that to overcome this dissatisfaction, retailers should not be seen to be profiteering or to come up with viable solutions.

“They want businesses to come up with a better solution, whether that’s paper or a thicker reusable bag,” said Mount Evelyn IGA owner Tony Ingpen.

Do you agree with this decision? Would you be happy to use paper or reusable bags?