Trash Bag Shortages Persist in Japan amid Mideast Turmoil

Kobe, June 22 (Jiji Press)–Shortages of local government-designated garbage bags persist in some areas of Japan due to concerns over supplies of petroleum products linked to turmoil in the Middle East, despite a U.S.-Iran agreement to end their fighting. Amid the shortages, many local governments that require residents to dispose of trash in designated bags have introduced temporary measures allowing the use of non-designated bags and are extending these steps for the time being while closely monitoring the situation. Such measures have been adopted in response to a jump in the number of people purchasing designated bags amid supply concerns over naphtha, a raw material for plastic products. In the western Japan city of Kobe, designated trash bags briefly sold out at some retail stores, prompting the city to allow the use of non-designated bags for garbage collection throughout June, provided they are transparent or translucent. The city said it had received nearly 500 inquiries from residents on the issue as of June 12. The city will maintain the measure until the end of the month as planned, despite the U.S.-Iran agreement to end the conflict. “Production has not caught up with consumer demand,” an official said. “Supply concerns will not be resolved immediately” with the end of the fighting, the official added. The city will consider extending the measure beyond next month depending on how the situation develops. The central Japan city of Nagoya introduced a similar measure on May 25. It has called on residents to refrain from excessive purchases of designated bags, saying that such bags are being produced at normal levels, and will continue allowing the use of non-designated bags through the end of this month. In Sapporo, the capital of the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, a measure to allow the use of non-designated bags is set to run through Sept. 30. Before the city announced the measure on June 8, orders for designated bags from supermarkets, convenience stores and other retailers sometimes reached nearly ten times the volume shipped. “The direct cause of the bag shortages is not concerns over naphtha supplies but hoarding,” a city official said. “It will likely take until the end of September for inventories to recover.” Local government leaders have welcomed the U.S.-Iran agreement. Yoshihide Esaki, governor of the central Japan prefecture of Gifu called it a step forward. Some remain skeptical about whether the agreement will be implemented, however. “We have been at the mercy of the conflict that U.S. President (Donald) Trump initiated himself,” an official from one local government said. “I’m not optimistic about the future.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]