The City of Toronto has a goal of diverting 70% of waste from landfill. To reduce the volume of plastic bags and encourage the use of reusable bags/bins, retailers in the City of Toronto will be required to charge a minimum of 5 cents per plastic bag requested by the customer at checkout, as of June 1, 2009. The requirements are covered under the City’s new Municipal Code Chapter 604, Packaging bylaw approved by Toronto City Council at its March 31, 2009 meeting.

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• City of Toronto letter to Toronto retailers about new bylaw for plastic shopping bags
  This letter is also available in: Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, French, Greek, Gujarati, Hindi, Italian, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Tamil, Urdu and Vietnamese.

• How the June 1, 2009 part of the bylaw affects Toronto retailers

• Section 4 of Chapter 604: section of the bylaw effective June 1, 2010

• City of Toronto produced official bylaw signs, including where retailers can get signs

• Frequently asked questions and answers (FAQs) (PDF) about this new bylaw.

• Plastic bags end up in places they don't belong - check out this ad (PDF).

• Here is an article for reprint (PDF) retailers or associations may use to educate retailers about the new bylaw on plastic shopping bags. It could be distributed as content in a newsletter, sent as an email, fax or blog or used as speaking points at a meeting.

Here’s how the bylaw, effective June 1, 2009, affects Toronto retailers:

• Retailers must charge a minimum of five cents for each plastic retail shopping bag requested by the customer to carry out their purchases or if plastic retail shopping bags are not offered, retailers must provide a free alternative (i.e., paper bag, cardboard box).

• Prominent signs must be posted at the checkout to let customers know about the City’s requirement to charge customers at the point-of-sale for each plastic retail shopping bag requested.

• The plastic retail shopping bag charge, detailing the number of bags used by the customer and the total amount charged, must be recorded on the receipt (if one is issued).

• Retailers must accept the use of any reusable containers (i.e., cloth bags, bins, boxes) brought in by customers to transport their purchases, in lieu of plastic retail shopping bags.

Retailers are entitled to keep the money received from the plastic bag charge, the money is not remitted to the City of Toronto. While the City does not stipulate what retailers should do with this money, it does support reinvesting the funds in local environmental or community-based initiatives.

Staff assigned to the City’s Municipal Licensing and Standards division will be responsible for the education and enforcement of this bylaw.

Section 4 of Chapter 604: section of the bylaw effective June 1, 2010
Retailers will be prohibited from offering or providing to customers plastic bags that are incompatible with Toronto’s recycling program (e.g., biodegradable plastic bags, compostable plastic bags or plastic bags with metal detailing or grommets, rope or hard plastic handles).

Staff assigned to the City’s Municipal Licensing and Standards division will be responsible for the education and enforcement of this bylaw.

City of Toronto official bylaw signage
The City of Toronto has produced official signs regarding the plastic shopping bag charge in three different formats:

• postcard (PDF) (size: 3.5 in. wide x 6.75 in. tall)
• sticker (PDF) (size: 4 in. wide x 5 in tall)
• poster (PDF) (size: 8.5 in. x 11 in)

Print quality files of these official City signs are available by clicking on the link for each of the above formats. Each style of sign may be downloaded and printed by retailers as required.

These official City-produced signs are available to retailers free-of-charge. Retailers may choose any one style of sign or a mixture to best suit their needs.

City locations to pick up additional signs (at lobby information desk)

• Toronto City Hall, 100 Queen St. W., Main floor
  Mon.- Fri. 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
• Scarborough Civic Centre, 150 Borough Dr., Main floor
  Mon.- Fri. 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
• North York Civic Centre, 5100 Yonge St., Main floor
  Mon.- Fri. 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
• East York Civic Centre, 850 Coxwell Ave., Main floor
  Mon.- Fri. 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
• Etobicoke Civic Centre, 399 The West Mall, Main floor
  Mon.- Fri. 8:30 am - 4:30 pm

The City is not in a position to take sign orders or deliver signs to retailers. Retailers must either go to one of the established distribution locations as of May 15 or download a sign from the files currently available on the website.

Here’s one more option. Additional signs in each of the formats may be available through your industry association, should you be a member of one. Please check with your particular association.

Retailers are directed to place these bylaw notification signs in a prominent place at checkout, easily visible to customers
For those retailers who have created their own signs to announce the minimum 5 cent plastic shopping bag charge, the City requires the retailer to have, at minimum, one sign prominently posted within the store that clearly features the full name of the bylaw: The City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 604, Packaging.