Hon. Chathuranga Abeysinghe - Deputy Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development

¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, on behalf of the Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development, I answer as follows:

¶ 02 (a) (i) Under the provisions of the Industrial Promotion Act, No. 46 of 1990, the number of plastic and polythene manufacturing factories currently registered under the Ministry is 158. According to Central Environmental Authority (CEA) data on licensed polymer-based product manufacturers, excluding polymer resin plants, there are 780 plastic product factories as at 30 June 2025.

¶ 03 (ii) Separate national production figures for plastic and polythene are not currently compiled. With financial and technical support from JICA, the CEA is establishing a data system to track import volumes of plastics, quantities released to the environment through industry, and volumes sent for recycling. It is planned to be operational from 2026.

¶ 04 (iii) The CEA has taken many measures to minimize plastic and polythene use, including bans and restrictions under Section 23 of the National Environmental Act on: - Manufacture, sale, offering for sale, display, free distribution or use of lunch sheets made from polythene as a raw material (including HDPE, LDPE and polypropylene) for local use; - Manufacture, sale, offering for sale, display, free distribution or use of polythene-based bags for local use, other than woven fabric sacks of 900x600x260 mm or larger; - Manufacture, sale, offering for sale, free distribution, display or use of expanded polystyrene food containers (lunch boxes), plates, cups and spoons for local use; - Prohibitions from 21.01.2021 on use of PET and PVC as packaging for agrochemicals; use of plastic sachets of net volume/weight 20 ml/g or less for food and non-food; manufacture and trade of inflatable plastic toys (other than balloons, balls and water-sports toys); plastic cotton buds with plastic stems (except for medical/clinical use); - Prohibitions on single-use plastic drinking straws and stirrers; single-use food containers, plates, cups, spoons, forks and knives except on air travel; garlands; and string hopper trays; - Controls on coloured PET bottles for water storage; use of PVC for bottle labelling; and non-degradable secondary seals on bottles.

¶ 05 (iv) Yes. With the intervention of the Ministry of Trade and participation of the Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Health, Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) and Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI), several rounds of discussions have been held to formulate regulations on standards for plastic water bottles, food containers and infant milk bottles intended for young children, including controlling hazardous chemicals such as Bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates in plastic packaging. Laboratory testing, inter-agency collaboration and expert inputs are being used to develop effective regulatory mechanisms, with continuous sample testing. Further, under the Food (Packaging Materials and Articles) Regulations, 2010, made by the Minister of Health upon the recommendation of the Food Advisory Committee under Act No. 26 of 1980, all plastic and other food packaging materials used in Sri Lanka are regulated.

¶ 06 (b) Does not arise.