“They had so much time to educate the public regularly. This shows they do not know how to promote or execute their policies. How are we supposed to trust Secretary [for Environment and Ecology] Tse Chin-wan?” she said.

Cheung Tak-wing, vice-chairman of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Pharmacy, said that since the legislation on plastics was passed in October, authorities had not contacted the body’s members to help them prepare for the ban.

“As far as I know, the Environmental Protection Department has not reached out to us, and our members had to find out about the news through the media,” he told a radio show. “We have to guess on our own, which is not ideal.”

The first phase of the ban prohibits the sale and distribution of single-use plastics such as cotton buds, toothpicks and styrofoam food containers, straws and cutlery.

Hotels are also barred from giving out free toiletries and bottled water.

Phase two, which could start as early as 2025, will outlaw plastic food containers and the free distribution of products such as dental floss picks and earplugs.

Authorities said the introduction of phase two would depend on the availability and affordability of non-plastic or reusable alternatives. They added that they would also review the implementation of the first phase before deciding on the next step.

The ban was originally expected to come into effect in late 2023 or early 2024, but was delayed to the second quarter of this year, with authorities in October ahead of the passing of the bill pointing to the need to carry out publicity and education work.

On Monday, two supermarkets in Causeway Bay and Wan Chai appeared to be out of plastic toothpicks, floss picks and cotton buds after local media reported that some residents were panic buying over the weekend, despite not all items being covered in the roll-out.

However, most retailers, including pharmacies, had plenty of supplies, and shopkeepers told the Post they had not seen many people stocking up in recent days.

Following the confusion, the Environmental Protection Department posted a series of social media messages on Sunday night to address concerns. It said that while plastic toothpicks would be banned in the first phase, floss and brush picks were not included.

Plastic bowls and food containers are also not banned in the first phase due to the lack of alternatives.

The department said the ban only applied to local retailers, and consumers could still purchase disposable plastic items from overseas online shops.

Cheung said that news about the ban had caused the sales of plastic cotton buds to increase in recent days, but not enough to cause alarm such as when residents stripped the shelves of masks during the early days of the pandemic.

Ray Chui Man-wai, chairman of catering body the Institute of Dining Art, said the government had provided the industry with a list of suppliers who could provide single-use alternatives to help them ease into the changes.

He said most restaurants had already phased out the use of styrofoam boxes, but the ban on disposable cutlery, especially plastic straws, posed a challenge.

“Even for dine-in customers, we use plastic straws. We tried switching to paper straws or pasta straws, and diners did not like it. It’s a matter of public acceptance,” he said, adding the sector was still working with suppliers to find other materials.

Chui said plastic containers cost less than HK$1 (13 US cents) and that he expected greener alternatives to be between HK$2 and HK$4.

“It is impossible to fully transfer the cost to customers. If the meal costs HK$50 when dining in but HK$55 to take away, customers will find it weird,” he told the same radio show.

He said he expected restaurants to start switching to green alternatives after the Lunar New Year period in February.

Lawmakers last year voiced concerns about the two policies coming into force in quick succession. Tommy Cheung Yu-yan of the catering constituency predicted the close commencement dates would create difficulties for the sector, which needed time and space to adapt.