It will surprise few to hear Japan is the world's second-largest generator of plastic waste. You only have to look at an Instagram accounts such as Plastic Obsessed Japan to grasp the issue. Its uploads — such as a single tomato, packed on a styrofoam bed, placed in black plastic tray and wrapped in plastic — criticize the country’s superfluous amount of packaging.

According to the United Nations Environment Programme, of the 9 billion tons of plastic that have ever been produced, only 9 percent has been recycled. Japan may have low levels of landfill-bound waste compared to the U.S., the world's biggest generator of waste per capita as of 2019, but plastic in Japan is often thermally “recycled” for electricity and hot water, and is still produced and used at an alarmingly high rate.

Now, the influx of disposable masks, plastic cutlery and gloves prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic are only adding to the layers of waste. To mitigate the growing issue, last month the Japanese government introduced a mandatory charge in shops for plastic bags, bringing the notion of reducing waste further into the foreground.