Soggy paper spoon sign of HK's struggle to save environment

Song about useless’ cutlery goes viral amid move to ban single-use plastics

- Magdalene Fung Hong Kong Correspondent

"Every time you feel a little useless, remember the paper soup spoon; for no matter how useless you are, it will be even more useless than you," croons a young man as he strums his guitar with a paper spoon in a viral video in Hong Kong.

That Instagram reel, which shows the misshapen spoon at the end, has been viewed more than 1.2 million times, garnering over 52,000 likes and 22,000 shares since it was posted by local singersongwriter Subyub Lee on April 21.

The tongue-in-cheek song in Cantonese and Mandarin reflects sentiments on the ground as the city takes steps to ban single-use plastics.

While laudable in its bid to save the environment, the move has confused and inconvenienced residents and tourists almost one month into the rollout of the first phase of the ban.

The new rules ban the sale or provision of a range of disposable plastic products including hotel toiletries, dining tableware, straws, umbrella bags and more.

They took effect on April 22, with the first six months considered an "adaptation period" during which businesses are not penalised so that they can use up their existing stocks. After the grace period, non-compliant businesses face fines of up to HK$100,000 (S$17,250).

Currently, plastic food and drink containers can still be sold and used for takeaway, but not for dining in. A second, more stringent phase that bans more plastic items, including tablecloths, dental floss and earplugs, is set to be enforced in 2025.