Bag Wars: Cute, Plastic, Paper, Cloth, BYOBag?

Like these bags? Red Poppy Bag from Etsy, great patterned bags from Envirosax,
Traders Joe's and Target bags can be found at the TJ and Target stores!

The bag wars have started! Shopping bags, that is. Although paper bags are still offered, Whole Foods Markets has stopped giving customers plastic shopping bags. According to Whole Foods, this “means roughly 100 million plastic bags will be kept out of the environment by the end of 2008.”

Late last year, San Francisco moved to ban plastic bags altogether. It is now illegal in San Fran for large chain supermarkets and pharmacies to provide plastic bags to their customers, although small businesses can still pass them out.

Other cities, like Halifax in Canada, have mixed reviews on getting rid of plastic bags.

Guilt Factor?
Paula Simons of the Edmonton Journal recently wrote about her guilt in continuing to use the plastic shopping bags. “I feel guilty. Like many an addict, I vow to stop. But I keep using those bags.”

Since we all know it’s a great thing for the environment, we’ll all start using different bags… right? So let’s get over the guilt and start talking about the fashion statements we’ll be making with our new bags!

There are several cute bags already out there. The Target bag is, of course, red with a cute graphic. Envirosax also makes adorable bags in great patterned fabrics, and Trader Joe’s has a stylish, functional bag – sturdy, deep and cute to boot!

I started bringing my own resuable bags to the grocery store last year. Added bonus: I found that my cloth bags have such long straps that I can place several bags over my shoulder and save some extra trips out to the car! I made a new habit of leaving them in the car and taking them in with me (most of the time). (They also come in handy, when I just feel the need for a bag!)

Added Bennies
Some stores are giving rebates of 5 to 10 cents for bringing in your own bags. When I shop Whole Foods, they give me 10 cents off for every bag that I bring, and Trader Joe’s enters my name in a raffle for free groceries every time I remember to bring my bags in with me! This does make me feel that the effort is worth it. Every little bit helps.