{"id":3578,"date":"2026-10-15T14:15:40","date_gmt":"2026-10-15T06:15:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/?p=3578"},"modified":"2026-10-15T14:15:40","modified_gmt":"2026-10-15T06:15:40","slug":"are-there-any-laws-regarding-the-labeling-of-plastic-bags-45ab-cefffa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/15\/are-there-any-laws-regarding-the-labeling-of-plastic-bags-45ab-cefffa\/","title":{"rendered":"Are there any laws regarding the labeling of plastic bags?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey guys, let\u2019s cut to the chase\u2014if you\u2019re a plastic bag supplier, you\u2019ve definitely stared at your labeling sheet at 2 a.m. wondering, \u201cWait, is this legal? Did I miss a rule?\u201d I\u2019ve been there. I run a small plastic bag supply shop, and half my week used to be spent Googling random state laws or panicking when a client asked, \u201cDoes this meet California\u2019s requirements?\u201d No cap, it\u2019s chaotic until you actually dig into the real laws\u2014not the vague blog posts that act like they know everything. Plastic Bag<\/a><\/p>\n

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First off, let\u2019s start with the big one: the U.S. Federal level. There\u2019s no federal law that says every single plastic bag has to have the same label. That\u2019s the thing people don\u2019t get right away\u2014most bag rules are state or local. The feds do have one, though, for stuff like compostable bags. If you\u2019re selling plastic bags that are supposed to break down, you have to follow the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)\u2019s Green Guides. Like, if you call a bag \u201ccompostable,\u201d it has to actually meet ASTM D6400 standards or whatever for industrial composting. You can\u2019t just slap that word on there to charge extra. I learned this the hard way last year\u2014we had a batch of produce bags labeled \u201ccompostable\u201d that didn\u2019t pass the ASTM test, and we had to re-label every single one. Total nightmare.<\/p>\n

Now, the state stuff is where it gets tricky, because it\u2019s all over the place. California\u2019s been the trailblazer here for years. They banned single-use plastic bags at grocery stores, right? But wait\u2014they still have labeling rules for the bags that are allowed. Any plastic bag that\u2019s exempt from the ban (like the thicker \u201creusable\u201d ones you get at hardware stores) has to say \u201cREUSABLE BAG, NOT FOR ONE-TIME USE\u201d in really big letters\u2014like at least 2mm tall. Also, if it\u2019s supposed to be recyclable, it has to have the chasing arrows symbol with a number, right? And if it\u2019s compostable, it needs to say that clearly, not just imply it. I\u2019ve had clients in California scream at me once when we sent a batch of checkout bags that only had the chasing arrows with no number\u2014they said that violates California\u2019s law on recycling labels.<\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s Oregon and New York. Oregon\u2019s similar to California but they add extra stuff: if a bag is made from post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic, you have to say what percentage. Like \u201c25% POST-CONSUMER RECYCLED CONTENT\u201d or whatever. New York\u2019s recent law says that all plastic bags (even the single-use ones that aren\u2019t banned yet) have to have a label that says \u201cRECYCLE ME\u201d and maybe a note about not littering. I once messed up a New York order and forgot that \u201cRECYCLE ME\u201d part, and we had to send a courier to pick up the wrong labels and re-label them. Cost me a couple hundred bucks, but that\u2019s the game.<\/p>\n

Outside the U.S.? Let\u2019s touch on that too, because we ship to Canada and Mexico sometimes. The EU has the Single-Use Plastics Directive, which came in a couple years back. Any plastic bag under 50 microns (that\u2019s super thin, the cheap ones at convenience stores) can\u2019t be sold at all, but if you\u2019re selling thicker ones, you have to label them with their thickness and maybe a note about reusing them. Also, in the UK, they have a plastic bag tax, but the labeling rule there is that all plastic bags sold by retailers have to say \u201cPLASTIC BAG – PLEASE REUSE\u201d on the front. I had a client in London last quarter who got a fine because their bags had that note on the back, not the front\u2014can you believe that? Small detail, huge headache.<\/p>\n

Wait, but what about local rules? Like, in Chicago, they have a separate law that adds a \u201cNO LITTERING\u201d label to all plastic bags, even if the state doesn\u2019t require it. Miami-Dade County did a thing a while back where all plastic bags have to have a QR code that links to their recycling program, but that got rolled back after pushback\u2014thankfully, because QR codes on bags would\u2019ve been a disaster for my team. Local laws are sneaky, so if you\u2019re supplying to a specific city, you can\u2019t just rely on state rules\u2014you have to check the city\u2019s website too. I have a note in my phone that says \u201cCHECK LOCAL LABEL RULES BEFORE SHIPPING TO ANY NEW AREA\u201d and I update it every time I hear about a new rule.<\/p>\n

Also, let\u2019s talk about the myths out there. A lot of people think you have to label every plastic bag with \u201cBAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT\u201d to avoid getting in trouble, but that\u2019s not true. Only a handful of places require that, like San Francisco, but most just require specific info. Another myth: if a bag is made from recycled plastic, you have to label it. Some states require that, some don\u2019t\u2014California does, Ohio doesn\u2019t. So you can\u2019t make a one-size-f-all label, that\u2019s for sure.<\/p>\n

As a supplier, here\u2019s what I do to stay on top of it. I have a folder on my computer labeled \u201cLABEL RULES\u201d that I update every month. I subscribe to a random email list for plastic bag suppliers\u2014they send alerts when a new state or city passes a labeling rule. And before I ship any order, my team and I double-check the destination\u2019s rules. Last month, we had an order for Seattle\u2014Washington\u2019s new rule says all plastic bags have to have a label that tells people how long they take to decompose (like \u201cTAKES 10+ YEARS TO DECOMPOSE\u201d). We almost missed that, but we caught it at the last minute and reprinted the labels. Saved us a lot of grief.<\/p>\n

Wait, what about penalties for getting it wrong? Let\u2019s be real\u2014this isn\u2019t a small fine. If you\u2019re a supplier, a state can hit you with fines per bag. I heard about a supplier in Texas last year who shipped bags without the required recycling label, and they got a $50,000 fine. That\u2019s not chump change. And worse, you lose clients\u2014no one wants to work with a supplier that\u2019s getting them in trouble with local governments. So labeling isn\u2019t just a \u201cnice to have\u201d for marketing\u2014it\u2019s a business requirement.<\/p>\n

Oh, and one last thing: if you\u2019re making compostable or biodegradable bags, don\u2019t lie on the label. The FTC has gotten super strict about Green Guides lately, and they\u2019ve fined so many companies for mislabeling \u201ccompostable\u201d plastic bags that don\u2019t actually meet the standards. I\u2019ve seen posts where the FTC will release a list of companies they\u2019re targeting, and half of them are plastic bag suppliers. It\u2019s not worth the risk\u2014be honest on the labels. If a bag is only good for landfill, say \u201cFOR LANDFILL USE ONLY\u201d or something, don\u2019t call it compostable.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Look, I know this all sounds like a lot of hoops to jump through, but once you get the system down, it\u2019s manageable. At the end of the day, it\u2019s all about following the rules so you don\u2019t get fined, and so your clients can sell their bags without issues. If you\u2019re a store owner, a restaurant, or another supplier and you\u2019re stuck on labeling rules\u2014hit me up. I\u2019ve got a list of all the current state, local, and even international labeling rules, and I can help you get labels right. Don\u2019t waste time Googling random stuff\u2014let\u2019s make this easy.<\/p>\n

HDPE Bag<\/a> References:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. U.S. Federal Trade Commission. (2023). Green Guides for Environmental Marketing Claims.<\/li>\n
  2. California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle). (2024). Single-Use Plastic Bag Requirements.<\/li>\n
  3. Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. (2023). Post-Consumer Recycled Content Labeling Rules.<\/li>\n
  4. European Commission. (2019). Single-Use Plastics Directive.<\/li>\n
  5. City of Chicago. (2022). Local Plastic Bag Labeling Ordinance.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n

    Tongcheng Xurun Plastic Industry Co., Ltd.<\/a>
    As one of the most professional plastic bag manufacturers in China, we offer a wide range of products with superior quality. Please feel free to wholesale bulk customized plastic bag at low price from our factory. For quotation, contact us now.
    Address: Shuanggang Town Industrial Park, Tongcheng City, Anqing City, Anhui Province
    E-mail: 15955605705@163.com
    WebSite:     https:\/\/www.cnxurun.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Hey guys, let\u2019s cut to the chase\u2014if you\u2019re a plastic bag supplier, you\u2019ve definitely stared at … Are there any laws regarding the labeling of plastic bags?<\/span>Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":925,"featured_media":3578,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3541],"class_list":["post-3578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry","tag-plastic-bag-4b02-cf4080"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/925"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3578"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3578\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stand-news.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}