North Cyprus is now banning single-use plastic products

Free or charged single-use plastic products will be banned in North Cyprus as of July 11th, following the ban regulation for plastic bags on June 29th. The new regulation has been published in Thursday’s official gazette. Accordingly, single-use plastic products will be prohibited for distribution and for promotion or special offer purposes. However, health institutions, prisons, police stations, police detention centres, nursing care homes, and homes for the elderly will be exempt from this implementation. Disposable plastic products on the market include: “Single-use cotton buds except for medical use; disposable cutlery (forks, spoons, knives), plastic plates, plastic cups, plastic stirrers, plastic straws except for medical use; sticks for balloons (except for non-consumer industrial use); disposable dishes for fast-food made of plastic, and expanded polystyrene, and products listed above made of bioplastic.” Plastic products that are designed to be refilled or reused for a similar purpose for which they are designed, to perform more than one cycle or rotation during their duration, or that are placed on the market, are excluded from the new implementation.