“回收料”翻新牙刷事件：减塑僵局，酒店责任几何？

The“Reprocessed-Plastic”ToothbrushScandal: Hotels’ResponsibilityinBreakingthePlasticReductionDeadlock Aftercross-checkingourfindingsagainstCCTV’sinvestigativereport,weweresurprisedtofindthatsomesingle-usetoothbrushandcombsamplescollectedbyseveralChineseenvironmentalNGOsfrom four-and five-star hotels were produced by manufacturers located in the veryindustrialparkthatCCTVhadexposedforillegallyproducing“reprocessed-plastic”toothbrushes. Manyinternationalhotelbrandsdonotprovidesingle-useamenitiesbydefaultoverseas,yettheirpracticesinChina aremarkedly different.FieldinvestigationsbyenvironmentalNGOsfoundthatall45four-andfive-starhotelssurveyedinChinawereprovidingtheso-called“sixsmallitems,”including single-usetoothbrushes and combs,by default,contrary to relevantrequirements. ThisarticlewasfirstpublishedinSouthernWeeklyonJune14,2026MaJun|Director,InstituteofPublic&EnvironmentalAffairsEditor|CaoHaidong Recently,Itraveledabroadseveraltimesformeetings,andafewdetailsleftadeepimpressiononme.First,inReading,UK,Iarrivedatalocalhotellateatnightandimmediatelycheckedthebathroomvanityforadisposabletoothbrushandcomb.Aftersearchingthroughdrawersandcabinets,Ifoundnotonlythattherewasnodentalkitorcomb,butalsonodisposableslippersorrazor. Adecorative wall illustration behind the toilet caught my eye:it was covered with line drawings oftoothbrushes,combsandrazors,andIcouldn’thelpsmiling. Afewdayslater,atahotelinOxford,IfoundthatthehotelalsodidnotprovideanyofthedisposableamenitiescommonlyreferredtoinChinaasthe“sixsmallitems.”WhenIasked,Iwastoldthatthehotelcouldprovidethemifguestsneededthem.Later,onabusinesstriptoNewYork,thehotelIstayedatinManhattanlikewisedidnotprovideanysingle-useplastic“sixsmallitems”bydefault. Becauseofmywork,Ipayparticularattentiontotheuseofsingle-useplasticamenitiesinhotels.Atthetime,Iwondered:arestricterplastic-reductionrequirementsfoundonlyinhotelsindevelopedcountries? Asithappened,IalsotraveledtoRabat,thecapitalofMorocco,forameeting.Atawell-knownlocalhotel,Isearchedthespaciousbathroomvanitybutagainfoundnotraceofadisposabletoothbrushorcomb. Whatstruckmewasthat,inearlierinvestigationsconductedwithseveralenvironmentalNGOs,wefoundthatmanyChinapropertiesunderthehotelgroupstowhichthefourhotelsmentionedabovebelongwereprovidingsingle-useguest-roomamenitiesbydefault.ThiswasdespiteChina’sclearrequirementthat,bytheendof2025,allinns,hotelsandhomestaysmuststopprovidingsingle-useplasticproductsbydefault. WhatsurprisedmeevenmorewasarecentreportbyCCTV’sFinancialInvestigationprogram,whichfoundthatsometoothbrushmanufacturersweresuspectedofillegallyusingvariouswasteandrecycledplasticmaterialstomakedisposabletoothbrushes,andthattheseproductswereenteringthemarketinlargequantities. BycomparingthesampleswithCCTV’sreport,weweresurprisedtofindthatsomeofthesingle-usetoothbrushandcombsamplescollectedfromfour-andfive-starhotelsbyseveralenvironmentalNGOsinChinaweremadebymanufacturerslocatedintheveryindustrialparkexposedbyCCTVforillegallyproducing“recycledplastic”toothbrushes. Dothesesingle-useplasticproductscarryqualityrisksorhiddendangers?Weurgethestar-ratedhotelsconcernedtoverifythematterassoonaspossibletoprotectconsumerhealthandsafety.Inthelongrun,wecallonallpartiestoworktogethertobreakthehotelsector’splastic-reductiondeadlockandmovepolicyfrompapertopractice. 01 High-EndHotelsLagFarBehindonPlasticReduction Howmuchplasticisconsumedbydisposableguest-roomamenitiesinthehotelsector? Accordingto a relevant report by the China Hospitality Association,by the end of 2024 China’saccommodationsector had 570,000 facilities and more than 19 million guest rooms.As the sectorcontinuesto expand,large quantities of disposable guest-room amenities,mainly toothbrushes,toothpasteandcombs,arebeingconsumed,creatinganenvironmentalburdenthatcannotbeignored. Tocurbtherapidgrowthofdisposableproductsinthehotelsector,theLawofthePeople’sRepublicofChinaonthePreventionandControlofEnvironmentalPollutionbySolidWaste,implementedin2020,clearlyrequirestourism,accommodationandothersectorstorefrainfromprovidingdisposableitemsbydefault,inaccordancewithnationalregulations.TheOpinionsonFurtherStrengtheningPlasticPollutionControl,issuedjointlybytheNationalDevelopmentandReformCommissionandtheMinistryofEcologyandEnvironment,subsequently set out a clear timetable:by the end of 2025,all inns,hotels andhomestaysmuststopprovidingsingle-useplasticproductsbydefault. Globally,plasticproductionandconsumptionhavegrownexponentiallyoverthepastseveraldecades,andannualplasticproductionnowexceeds400milliontonnes.Plasticproductionnotonlyconsumesvastamountsofresources,butalsoreleaseslargequantitiesofgreenhousegasesandtoxicpollutants,worseningthe climatecrisis.Whenlargeamounts ofsingle-useplasticproducts arediscarded,theybecomelong-lasting“whitepollution.”Iftheyareopenlyburnedorimproperlytreated,theymayreleasehighlytoxicsubstancessuchasdioxins,nottomentiontheinvisiblebutevenmoredifficultproblemofmicroplasticpollution. Itwasagainstthisbackdropthat,startingin2022,theInstitut