Reduce plastic carrier bags

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The poor old plastic carrier bag eh? All it tries to do is offer us its services by helping us carry things and all it gets as thanks is a lot of people wanting to ban it from our lives.

How many plastic carrier bags do we get through in the UK?

The amount of plastic carrier bags given out by supermarkets amounts to a whopping 17½ billion per year. The average family accumulates 60 bags in four trips to the store.

The amount of petrol used to make these bags is enough to drive a car 2.1 billion miles or nearly 54,000 times round the world; yet only one in every 200 plastic carrier bags is recycled.

Why are plastic bags so bad for the environment?

A plastic carrier bag will take up to 1000 years to break down once it is in the landfill. Compare that to its useful life which can be measured in minutes - the length of time it takes to get our shopping home from the store before being dumped in the dustbin.

Some bags end up in the sea; either through deliberate litter or air borne from the landfill. Out at sea, plastic carrier bags pose great danger to marine life. Globally, an estimated one million birds and 100,000 marine mammals and sea turtles die every year from entanglement in, or ingestion of, plastics.

A shocking story reveals that a Minke whale stranded on a beach in Normandy was found to have 800g of plastic bags and packaging within its stomach. Amongst the identifiable litter were 1 English plastic and foil crisp packet, 2 English supermarket bags, 7 coloured dustbin fragments, 7 transparent plastic bags and 1 food container.

Other bags end up clogging drains which can cause flooding and create a breeding ground for disease.

What can be done?

At least 40 countries or states are now known to have banned plastic carrier bags or taken action to restrict their use.

Since March 2002 Ireland has reduced its checkout plastic bag use by 90%.

A year ago, B&Q, which had been giving out 7m carrier bags a year in Scotland, introduced a 5p-per-bag charge in Scottish stores that may be adopted UK-wide. The result? An 82% fall in consumption, and a cash windfall for Keep Scotland Beautiful. Significantly, 70% of customers are “very happy” with the scheme, with only 1.8% “very unhappy”. M&S have followed suit.

Back in April of 2007, Mobury in Devon was the first town to be ‘plastic bag free’. Since then the idea has spread across the UK and now there is talk of banning the plastic bag altogether.

In 2007, Gordon Brown was reported as saying “I am convinced that we can eliminate single-use plastic bags altogether in favour of long-lasting and more sustainable alternatives.”

What can I do to reduce the amount of plastic bags I send to landfill?

There are many things you can do to reduce the amount of plastic carrier bags you use. Here are our 8 top tips:

1- Reuse

The easiest is to reuse your carrier bags. When you get home, instead of binning them, put them back into your car or bag for the next shopping trip. You can reuse them several times. Some supermarkets, such as Tesco offer reward points for every bag you reuse.

2- A bag is for life

Instead of using disposable plastic carrier bags, buy a ‘bag for life’ which are available at most supermarkets. These last for around 10 shopping trips. When it wears out the cashier will replace it free of charge and the old one will be recycled by the supermarket.

3- Return to sender

Most supermarkets have a collection bin for carrier bags. If you don’t want your carrier bags anymore, put them in the recycling bin. If you have home delivery, your driver will take them back to the store for you.

4- Donate

Donate your carrier bags to a charity shop or local independent retailer. Packaging costs money and these shops will be pleased to use your bags for other customers.

5- Go natural

Better still, do away with plastic altogether as they all eventually break down and end up in the landfill. Opt for a natural fabric bag such as cotton or jute. Look out for future competitions to win a reusable bag of your own! If you’re handy with a needle and thread, then why not make your own Morsbag?

6- the old ways are the best ways

Old fashioned whicker shopping baskets are natural, biodegradable and very strong. They last for years and will hold your heavy shopping without tipping things over.

7- Box it up

Keep a couple of cardboard boxes in the car so that you are never caught without something to put your shopping in.

8- Be a trolley dolly

The shopping trolley is back and it’s cool, funky and a must-have fashion accessory! Forget images of your granny with her brown PVC, Natural Collection, winner of the Observer Ethical Awards for an amazing THREE years in a row, boast the first non-PVC trolley. This trolley was voted BEST BUY in the Independent newspapers 10 Best Shopping Trolleys in April 2008.

9- A Shameless plug and a hearty Yay!

Our favourite reusable bags are the Onya bag and Doy bags. Onya bags are made from recycled parachutes. These bags fold up into a tiny pouch and weigh just 50g. They come with a caribiner clip for you to attach to your belt loop, car keys or bag. These mean that they are always ‘onya’ and you never forget them!

Doy bags are made by a women’s co-operative in the Philippines from recycled tetrapak juice cartons. Not only are they recycled, but they’re fair trade too. They’re bright, fun and will get you noticed!

Watch this site for news on how to get your 15% discount on Onya bags soon!

My thanks go to Dan from Onya bags for giving me help with the statistics for this article.

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Comments

Comment by Almost Mrs Average on June 6, 2008 @ 11:45 pm

I became a trolley dolly a few months ago and I now wouldn’t be without it. It is really like a huge handbag on wheels. It’s made in Spain using Italian fabric…I can’t resist plugging it because it is utterly gorgeous…check out http://rolser.wordpress.com/2008/03/09/rolser-and-the-rubbish-diet/
xx

Comment by Mrs Green on June 7, 2008 @ 5:24 am

Oooo, lovely, Mrs A. I’m rather partial to a bit of cow print myself. But the Marilyn Monroe one is a little difficult to resist

I’m glad you’re getting on well with yours. How do you find people react to them - are they still associated with the older generation or do you think they’ve entered ‘eco chic’ now?

Mrs g x

Comment by Mr Green on June 7, 2008 @ 9:49 am

This is such an important issue!! The plastic bag is perhaps the ugliest ‘convenience’ of our time. We accept it, use and lose it it without thought or compromise and yet each plastic bag we dispose of adds up to this vast mountain of pollution that will still be here poisoning the world once we have long gone.

We must reject the plastic bag, we must make every effort to use a natural alternative and not rely on this insidious convenience.

Comment by Almost Mrs Average on June 7, 2008 @ 12:32 pm

Well Mrs G…with trolley bags like this, it is definitely the eco-chic way to go. Mr particular black & white number gets lots of admiring glances as I march along the streets of Bury St Edmunds. Admiration from the young and old.

I am always tickled pink when I walk past the row of more elderly and wiser ladies, sitting waiting for their bus, with such comments as “ooohh, that’s a lovely one Doris”

A shining smile on my face appears accompanied by a warm glow inside, knowing it’s full of loose fruit and vegetables inside.

The only side, due to laziness and the size of our house, is that it does end up as a glorified fruit basked when I get home.

Comment by Almost Mrs Average on June 7, 2008 @ 1:10 pm

LOL - my spelling eh? Fruit basked? I think it’s me that’s turning into a fruit basket and I am officially off my trolley! ;-D xxx

Comment by Mrs Green on June 8, 2008 @ 12:16 pm

I really shouldn’t apologise for your typos. I did a classic one last week, which, in fact was highly Freudian and will be used for the title of an article someday soon.

I love typos; they can be extraordinarily entertaining and we love you all the more for your humaness………

We welcome all fruit baskets who are off their trolley around here

Mrs G x

Comment by Kris on June 9, 2008 @ 12:47 pm

Just a thought on Bag for Life.

I really like Waitrose ones as they seem to be particularly durable. The two gorgeous rose print ones (yes, a fashion choice I felt) I have tucked in my handbag have actually been in service for over a year now. Admittedly they do a bit less since I couldn’t resist the Tesco ladybird Jute bag which is often sufficient on it’s own, but it’s nice always to have a bag with me and the Waitrose ones are.

Comment by Mrs Green on June 9, 2008 @ 2:06 pm

Hi Kris,

Welcome to our site and thanks for leaving your thoughts here - we love hearing from our readers.

Ooo, a rose print bag for life; now you’re talking. I have to admit I don’t like the jute ones; I really need something I can fold up to be tiny otherwise I don’t take them with me. Jute is so scratchy too!!

I hope you enjoy the site!

mrs G x

Comment by Mrs Green on July 27, 2008 @ 9:29 am

I just had contact from a reader of My Zero Waste who wanted to tell everyone that Morrisons in Solihull take back carrier bags for recycling.
There’s another one to add to the list!

Comment by Helen on September 29, 2008 @ 6:42 pm

Thanks for this site I’m doing an art project on plastic bags, and i am coming from a recycling/try not to use angle.
I am busy thinking of ways to reuse carrier bags including joining them togther to make a water resistant ground sheet, lining waste bins etc….Anybody got any other ideas. Thanks

Comment by Mrs Green on September 30, 2008 @ 6:37 pm

Hello Helen, welcome to the site. The art project sounds great and I hope some of the other readers come along and give you ideas.
I’ve seen them crotched into reusable bags, rugs, baskets and even sandals on my travels around the net LOL!

here is some inspiration too.

Have fun!

Comment by A. Jack on October 15, 2008 @ 9:58 pm

I totally agree with the writer ,,
I would like to share this article with my nearby Super Market ,, it is a big one and git LCD screens. I’ve already asked the supervisor if i can make PowerPoint slides about how plastic bugs are dangerous, and he agreed. I’ld like to use this pic in the article in my presentation ,, and I’ll put your website under the pic. My question is, am i allowed to use this picture ?

please reply me on my Email..
Kind Regards,,
A.Jack

Comment by Mrs Green on October 16, 2008 @ 7:29 pm

A.Jack - welcome to the site. I have emailed you, so please check your inbox!