Walmart Canada is set to eliminate the use of single-use plastic bags for in-store purchases, online grocery pickup and deliveries by early next year, the company announced on Tuesday.
The change will apply to all of Walmart’s more than 400 locations across the country by April 22, which is also Earth Day.
“Eliminating plastic shopping bags is a significant milestone on our journey to becoming a regenerative company – and it’s the right thing to do,” Horacio Barbeito, president and CEO of Walmart Canada, said in a news release.
Walmart says the change will prevent almost three-quarters-of-a-billion plastic bags from entering circulation each year.
The federal government had previously announced a ban on certain single-use plastic items, including bags, straws and cutlery, would take effect by the end of 2021, but now expects regulations to be finalized sometime next year.
The government ban is part of a larger plan to eventually eliminate plastic waste in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
According to Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadians discard three million tonnes of plastic waste each year, and only nine per cent of it is recycled.
With files from CTVNews.ca’s Jennifer Ferreira
