After reading this post, don’t forget to enter our contest – you could win a new dishwasher. Plus, do you have your own story to tell? Send it to greenchallenge@canadianliving.com (no more than 300 words, please), and you could win one of 30 daily prizes.
Today’s post is by senior web editor Helen Racanelli.
As a child, I remember asking my mom why, on TV and in the movies, people always sauntered down the street and into their kitchens carrying a large paper bag stuffed with groceries (including the obligatory baguette poking out the top). Why always a paper bag?
“Because plastic bags look dorky,” she said.
And if that isn’t enough to incriminate them, plastic bags are terrible for the environment. Guess how many we use a year? An estimated 10 billion!
So in light of that outrageous statistic, I banned plastic grocery bags from my home. The first few weeks were toughest, I kept forgetting to bring reusable totes with me, or to remind the cashier that I didn’t need a bag for small items I could shove in my purse. Eventually it got easier and the net effect is that I’m now almost free of plastic grocery bags.
You can do it too. Here are some tips I’ve gathered along the way:
• Grab your reusable tote bags as you’re grabbing your grocery list and heading out the door
• Carry a thin nylon bag with you. It folds up into the size of a tissue packet. Or, just carry a plastic bag in your handbag (I know, still plastic, but reusing is always the smarter option!)
• Fine yourself when you forget. The times I forget, I’ve decided I’ll plunk all the small change in my wallet into whatever the little charity box is that’s invariably at the cashier’s station.
How do you cut back on plastic bag use? What are your favourite kinds of reusable bags?
Today’s code word: bag
Read more:
• Sew a recycled tote bag out of juice bags
• Sew a simple and stylish tote bag
• Crocheted eco-friendly carryall
• How to cut the plastic from your kitchen
I’m one of those lovers of big purses. So, I if I forget my stash of reusable bags, I use my purse. Often I just carry things in my hands out of the store…with the receipt showing, of course.
It’s funny how if we buy a pack of gum, the clerk will hand it to us to carry. But, if we buy a tube of lipstick, it has to go in a bag. When did we get so obsessed with putting into bags things that are already packaged? Unless you need a bag to carry huge quantities or you’re a bit embarrassed to be seen with what you bought, I think we can get away with carrying things in our hands more often than we consider.
A way to fine yourself for forgetting your own reusable bag is to buy another one when you’re shopping, then give it to a friend to encourage them to use it.
I must say, however, I am truly impressed with the number of people at my grocery store who come in with their own bags.
Comment by Angela — April 12, 2008 @ 2:35 pm
What does it mean when it says “find the daily code word in the blog? Doesn’t make any sense!!
What code word and how does one find it?
Comment by Anne — April 12, 2008 @ 6:09 pm
When I shop and an item is small, I put it in my purse with the bill. One cannot walk out of a store carrying a product because it will look like it might have been nicked. I carry my black tote bag with me when I mall shop and a few when I grocery shop. I prefer brown paper bags as everything cannot be bagged together like meats and veggies with household cleaning products. Also, anything damp or wet has to go into one of the samll clear plastic bags first. Brown bags are great for packing in all the stuff I shred which goes to recycling. There are pros and cons.
Comment by Anne — April 12, 2008 @ 6:16 pm
There is a website that shows you how to make your own reusable bags out of old sheets or clothes. www.morsbags.com They actually recommend you get together with your friends and make a bunch. Then pass them out to others.
Comment by Sandra — April 12, 2008 @ 8:01 pm
My roommate and I use cloth bags when we go shopping. As neither of us owns a vehicle, I find that the cloth bags are easiest to carry because of wide handles that don’t bite into your hands as much. The PC cloth bags are great too, becasue they’re made from recycled pop and water bottles. And you can fit alot into them.
Comment by Lisa — April 13, 2008 @ 8:45 am
What really irritates me when I’m shopping is the number of cashiers that are so rude and even snotty when you try telling them you don’t want a plastic bag, or you don’t want them to double up your bag. I get dirty looks, rude attitudes and even ignored at times with my things being put into bags anyway. I frequently will unpack my things right at the till or will take off the extra double bag, only to be given dirty looks. I often feel like I am the only person in the world that is trying to cut down on the use of plastic bags. I do have cloth bags, but my memory isn’t so great and I frequently forget them in my car, until I get to the cash register that is. I seldom buy a large amount, so will try to carry my things out the door, only to be met with the previous scenario. People working in stores should welcome people that don’t want to use plastic bags, managers and owners should really appreciate these people if only because it helps them reduce their bottom line. It is sometimes just so frustrating to do a simple thing like pass on a plastic bag. **Thanks for letting me vent!!**
Comment by Kathy — April 13, 2008 @ 12:37 pm
Where I get my groceries they sell cloth bags for 99 cents.When I empty them at home I hang them on my front door handle so I won’t forget to take them to the car and in the car I put my purse in it.The plastic bags I take with me when I take my dogs for a walk and use it to pick up you know what after the dogs.
Comment by Eva Walker — April 26, 2008 @ 7:53 pm
Stores need to do their part by training the cashiers to ask if one wants a bag if there are just a few items. Frequently I am trying to tell them no bag and they are not listening and put a bag anyway which I remove. When grocery stores had union workers and retail was not such a crappy job it was possible to get good service. Now it seems like half of the people that ring up the sales are brain dead and they are so involved in inappropriate conversations with co-workers that it is hard to get a word in. One has to be a staunch “no plastic bags” warrior it seems and then the cashier looks at you like you are weird that you don’t want a bag. I run my canvas bags right out to the car after unpacking them and put them next to the kids car seat so that I will see them when we are going into the store.
Comment by shauna — April 28, 2008 @ 12:21 pm