Comments on: Grocery Bags Should Be Free!

By: mad

mad — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 18:42:25 +0000

I believe that everything green green should be free.We would get a bigger response from people and save the Earth faster!

By: Ziggee

Ziggee — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 13:12:19 +0000

when our local grocery store chain started to sell their big canvas bags I bought them, even though I had my own smaller canvas bags. I liked the price because you could buy one of their large canvas bags for under $4.00 and they save trips to and from the car to get groceries. we keep our bags in the trunk of our car so they are always available to use at the grocery store or other stores.

I once forgot to but the bags back in the car and went shopping. When we got there and noticed I stopped at the isle where they had them (craftstore) I put it in the cart and did my shopping. when I got to the check out I paid for it with the rest of my purchases and had them use the new bag to put my merchandise in.

Unfortunatly the bag I bought at the craftstore was much smaller and cost morethan the bags I bought from the grocery store. But I have never forgotten my bags again.

Zig

By: Beth

Beth — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 18:49:58 +0000

I’ve thought about using canvas bags but I’m scared that I’ll never actually get them into the building. I have a hard enough time remembering to take my shopping list with me let alone bags.

The other thing that worries me is that one time when I only bring a few cloth bags but end up with more items than will fit in them. These items I’m sure would end up in plastic bags. Wouldn’t that defeat the whole purpose of me bring the cloth bags in the first place?

I do like the idea of using cloth bags, but I’m afraid that it will end up being a lot more work to use them in my daily life. Besides, if I didn’t get a couple plastic bags every now and then, what would I use to line my tiny bathroom trashcan?

By: mary

mary — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:42:27 +0000

I think $1 is a bargain for a bag you can use over and over again. I have a 4 of those bags. (about 6 of my own canvas bags) You can carry more in a canvas bag and they don’t break like those cheap plastic ones. We need to get rid of those plastic bags. They are a petroleum based product. Just think if 50,000 families switch to canvas bags saving 5 plastic bags a week that’s 250,000 bags not in a landfill. (I honestly don’t believe the majority are recylced) You have kids this is a good lesson for them.

By: Alexis

Alexis — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:29:15 +0000

Er… I think you miss the point of the reusable bags.

“I am not willing to buy grocery bags when I can get them for free,” you say. That’s exactly why the stores are doing what they are doing. You can’t get them for free any more, because it’s a tremendous waste of resources to use a bag for 10 minutes and then throw it away, or even recycle it.

Why don’t stores give away reusable bags? Because that’s just the same as giving away non-reusable bags, except that reusable bags are a bit more expensive and resource-intensive to produce.

I don’t buy the idea of “rewarding” repeat customers with a reusable bag. Sounds like a gimmick that would end up in my kitchen closet. Better to force every customer, every time they purchase something, to decide whether they really need that bag badly enough to pay $1.00 for it, and remind them that if they’d bought their own bag, they wouldn’t have to worry about it!

By: Pension

Pension — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 20:15:23 +0000

I love my canvas shopping bags, because they double up as a cool carry bag for my train travel during the week!

By: Joe

Joe — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:53:49 +0000

Here’s a way to get a free reusable bag:
http://www.ecojoes.com/free-reusable-tote-bag-from-earthbound-farm-organic/

Also, at many conferences and big events they give away free tote bags. If that doesn’t work for you, try craigslist or freecycle to get some free bags.

By: Green Me

Green Me — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:46:09 +0000

I love my chico bags (yes they cost $5.00), but we’ve had them for over two years and they work like plastic bags, only you can put more in them, and they store so compactly I can fit three in my little purse no problem! Most of the stores around here give a nickel refund for every reusable bag, so 20 uses would pay for a $1.00 bag. However, the greenest store in our area did give the bags away for a month last year for every $25 purchase ($50 netted 2 bags). People were getting a little high and mighty about the bag refund at this store, so they have stopped giving refunds, although they still track reusable bags, and instead donate the nickel to a local charity! BTW I see multiple people using canvass and other sorts of reusable bags EVERY time I shop!

By: Carnival of the Green #123 | Natural Family Living Blog

Carnival of the Green #123 | Natural Family Living Blog — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:54:25 +0000

[…] local grocery stores attempt to convert patrons to reusable bags and why she thinks they should be giving the bags away for free. While I understand wanting to save money I think green takes precedence and stores can’t […]

By: Kim

Kim — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 20:01:28 +0000

I was recently attacked by no less than ten plastic bags while driving my van on the freeway.

The “Pack n Tote” bags are nice because two bags fit in one grocery cart. So instead of shlepping back and forth to the car for more little white plastic bags, you just carry in two big bags.

Eventually, we are going to have to do away with all plastic disposable stuff anyway. So, I figure we might as well suck it up and get used to it.