Do You Buy Plastic Bags

[emmie]

perhaps we need a rethink -

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-50579077

[Chipchopper]

No, I've used the same fabric bags for many years now.

[teacake44]

There's only one sure way of dealing with plastic carrier bags, and that's to ban supermarkets from selling them completely. I know there's been a big reduction since charging for them, but is it the answer? no I don't think so. We would soon get used to taking our own cloth bags when going shopping, like years ago.

[Barsel]

I agree with teacake that shops should stop selling plastic bags completely. Surely they could sell non plastic bags like the netting type of bag (remember those?) They take up hardly any space so can be put in your pocket or handbag, and they hold quite a lot of groceries.

[teacake44]

With all the other pollution problems we have, this one is so easy to deal with, if we can't solve this easy problem, what chance is there of putting anything else right.

[emmie]

they will still sell bin bags surely.

[woofgang]

No I don't buy carrier bags or have them with my deliveries. We don't have wheelybins here and are given bin bags and recycling bags by the council. I do buy poo pickup bags and see no point in buying the compostable or recyclable ones as the council just burn them.

[bhg481]

About a dozen years ago we bought some very thin nylon bags which fold into a small storage pouch. These are small enough for me to carry a couple in my pockets and my wife to have a couple in her handbag but are large enough and strong enough to hold as much as we can carry weight-wise. They are still going strong after all these years and mean we have never needed to need plastic bags from shops. As well as that we bought some reusable vegetable storage bags from Lakeland, which we always take with us when food-shopping, so never need to use bags for loose veg either.

[emmie]

would anyone pay more, say 70p for a bag for life, so to stop this waste..

[teacake44]

emmie, as regards to bin bags, there are many items of bags of all kinds that the modern day would find it difficult to do without, but carrier bags is not one of them, as said in this post, its the easy one to do with out. You have lots of items in supermarkets ( food) that needs to be wrapped that's on sale.
There's lots of talk about supermarkets/shops selling loose ( unwrapped) food, this really is not an option in my view, they promote self service, therefore you have a very big health issue here, not everyone is fussy about keeping their hands clean when handling food, so infection could spread very quickly, could you really see supermarkets installing hand wash gel at the entrance, like hospitals, and even if they did would people use it?.
That said there are many areas were a big reduction of plastic can be reduced, for example I've just opened a plastic box of washing pods ( persil) the box is massive, but it only contains 15 pods, that only just cover the bottom of the box, this is to make you think your getting more for your money, there are thousands of items that are packed in over sized containers, just to fool us, you get a small slice of steak that's packed and displayed on a plastic tray that's 3 x bigger than the steak. disgusting and needs to be stopped. it makes me mad to see this happening.

[emmie]

1 and half billion bags for life in use according to the news.

[Mamyalynne]

Haven't bought a carrier bag in years.

As I said on Tuesday's thread...

//I shop online and get as much of my fresh produce loose as I can, they then pop it in a brown paper carrier with the bar codes stuck to that bag.

My raw meat,fish and frozen comes in plastic, I hope they will find a good way to make all of that recyclable soon.//

[jennyjoan]

I buy plastic bags for the dog's litter cos the ones I get are strong.

[ummmm]

My OH buys them and I reuse them. I use them to sort out food in the chest freezer. I do try and get him to bring them to work with him but he always forgets or uses them as a bin.

[teacake44]

Jennyjoan, a plastic bag for animal waste to me is a must, this is one area that would be difficult to do without one.

[pixie374]

They say it has risen, but also that it has dropped?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-49185007
I keep hessian bags in the car and use those for shopping, but I have used all the carrier bags I had as bin liners now, so might have to buy more.

[teacake44]

I must admit I've been guilty of just tuning up at the supermarket and using plastic carriers for a long time, as many as I needed, but never since we were made aware of the damage they were having.

[pastafreak]

I have reusable bags...nylon and bags for life...that I got from wilko. I always carry them in my backpack. I'll get carriers in shops for loose or larger items, or clothing. I want clothing in a clean bag. Those bags I collect get recycled...either for rubbish, or I take loads to work. We give them to clients for take away food, clothing and toiletries. If you get bags, donate them to charities as they are very useful.

[Arksided]

I have a sports bag and four 'bags for life', for my usual shop... but when away from home and need to buy some things... what am I supposed to do juggle and balance things on ones head.

[emmie]

Ark
have one handy, surely you have a bag of some description to put one or two in

[Mamyalynne]

There's always going to be an occasion when you need a bag for an impulse buy or when you have forgotten to take one, then the shop has the responsibility to provide something more sustainable.