The reusable shopping bag , sometimes called bag-to-life in the UK, is a type of shopping bag that can be reused many times. This is an alternative to disposable paper or plastic bags. These are often made from fabrics such as canvas, natural fibers such as hemp, synthetic fibers woven, or thicker plastics that are more durable than disposable plastic bags, allowing for multiple use.
The reusable shopping bag is a kind of carrying case, which is available for sale in supermarkets and clothing stores. Some reusable bags have been found to contain large amounts of lead. Reusable bags require more energy to produce than regular plastic shopping bags. one reusable bag requires an amount of energy equal to the estimated 28 traditional plastic shopping bags or eight paper bags. "If used once per week, four or five reusable bags will replace 520 plastic bags per year", according to Nick Sterling, research director at Natural Capitalism Solutions. A study commissioned by the UK Environment Agency in 2005 found that the average cotton bag was only used 51 times before disposal. In some cases, reusable bags should be used more than 100 times before they are better for the environment than disposable plastic bags.
Video Reusable shopping bag
History
Use in the United States
First introduced in the US in 1977, plastic shopping bags for groceries in grocery stores grew in the 1980s and 1990s, replacing paper bags. In the 1990s, governments in some countries began imposing taxes on the distribution of disposable plastic bags or to regulate their use. Some supermarkets have encouraged buyers to stop using disposable plastic bags, such as offering reusable shopping bags or providing information about the environmental ' environmental bag. The physical form of reusable shopping bags is often different from that typical before the prevalence of plastic bags. The apparel industry is promoting a reusable shopping bag as a sustainable mode.
Many supermarkets encourage the use of reusable shopping bags to increase sales and profit margins. Most non woven bags cost $ 0.10-0.25 to produce but sell for $ 0.99- $ 3.00. Since stores receive diminishing returns due to saturated markets, there is concern that prices will go down and they will become new disposable bags. Some major supermarket chains have ropes or calico bags available for sale. They are sold with the announcement of environmental problems in many cases. Those sold in supermarkets often have designs that are related to nature, such as tree molds or from the earth, to emphasize environmental problems. One of the startup companies from Duluth, Minnesota, embroidered their bags with their local Aerial Lift Bridge on it. Some supermarkets have gift programs for customers carrying their own shopping bags. When customers accumulate a certain number of points, they usually get discount coupons or gifts, which motivate customers to reduce the use of plastic bags. Some retailers like Whole Foods Market and Target offer cash discounts for carrying reusable bags.
Since 1999, 6.25 billion reusable bags were imported into the United States for resale and supplied under the Harmoni Tariff Code (HTC) 4202923031 as reported by the United States International Trade Commission.
Most US grocery store customers do not carry their own bags, and many reusable bags are not used by customers, according to a 2008 article in the Wall Street Journal.
In 2009, Walmart Stores proposed turning three California stores into reusable specialty stores. Simultaneously, Walmart is ready to introduce a reusable bag of $ 0.15. On October 23, 2009, Walmart canceled plans to dump luggage bags and introduce new low-cost bags. Unlike the previous handbags that sold for $ 0.99 and $ 0.50, these low-cost bags can reduce price incentives for reusing this heavier bag.
Use in the United Kingdom
Reusable shopping bags are offered in most UK supermarkets. It is sold for a nominal amount, usually 10 cents, and replaced for free. This bag is more durable than standard bags, which means it can be reused many times.
The main purpose of this is to ensure that packaging waste laws are met and to push bags for recycling (which usually result in retailers a small amount of money per bag), and unlike a 5p carrier bag, there is a (small) financial incentive to carry the bag back for recycling, reducing environmental impact.
In contrast to most carrier bags, bags for life tend to be colorful and sometimes show some aspects of supermarket ads. Some supermarkets have the same design over the years, while some, such as Waitrose, play designs to suit season or latest ad campaigns.
Waitrose was the first British Supermarket to launch Bag For Life in collaboration with British Polythene Industries. It was the idea of ​​Gini Ekstein, of the British Polythene industry. Gini Ekstein with Paul Oustedal and Nick Jones, from Waitrose, launched Bag For Life in 1998. This is a first round recycling initiative; back and a broken bag made into black bench places outside the Waitrose shop. Initial marketing messages designed by Gini Ekstein, British Polythene Industries and Beth Chiles, from Message Marketing, are still in use today. In April 2008, Marks and Spencer gave free "bags of a lifetime" to every customer, as their normal plastic bags had to be paid from 6 May. This will be a small amount of 5 cent carriers. Bags are given to customers every time they shop, so they will have plenty when the transition in May arrives. Later, Sainsbury and other supermarkets introduce a live bag for . In 2016, the British Government introduced taxes on all carrier bags, meaning that every consumer pays 5p for each carrier bag from each store.
Apollo Bags is the first company in the UK to introduce a popular shopping bag with a rubber-based biodegradable layer that will be degraded in our lifetime.
The increasing use of jute bags and juco (a mixture of cotton and hemp) has provided a natural alternative to disposable plastic bags and reusable plastic bags. These are found in many large supermarkets, and over 50 million have been sold in the UK alone. This bag has a 3-4 years old and is often regarded as an ecological option. Reusable plastic bags do not have a simple end-of-life dump. Many are made of mixed plastic, so they can not be easily recycled or the only colored ones that are used are black solid waste bags that are energy-intensive to convert.
Jute bags have become a crossover product from alternative to plastic for fashion accessories/shopper. The gunny bag will last for about 4 years - if used properly it will replace more than 600 single bags. At the end of life, they can be used as planters to grow garden vegetables.
Use in Ireland
In Ireland, they were introduced in March 2002, when Environmental Plastic Retail Bags were brought in to reduce the large number of disposable bags used annually. Bags for 70 euro cents or more are exempt from user charges.
Use in Australia and New Zealand
These bags are known as green bags in Australia because of their relative environmental friendliness and the usual green color (though far from universal). Green bags and similar reusable shopping bags are generally distributed at the point of sale by supermarkets and other retail outlets. They are intended to be reused repeatedly to replace the use of hundreds of High-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic bags. Most green bags are made of 100% Polypropylene Non-woven (NWPP) which can be recycled but not biodegradable. Some companies claim to make NWPP bags from recycled materials, but with current manufacturing techniques this is not possible. All NWPP bags are made of virgin material. Similar bags made of hemp, canvas, calico or hemp but not discussed here. A typical base insert is 200 mm ÃÆ'â € "300 mm and weighs 30 g. Generally made of rigid plastic.
Maps Reusable shopping bag
Food safety
Most reusable bag buyers do not wash their bags once they are back home, and the bags may cause food poisoning, according to Dr. Richard Summerbell, research director at Toronto-based Sporometrics and former head of the medical mycology for the Ontario Ministry of Health.. Due to their repeated exposure to raw meat and vegetables, there is an increased risk of foodborne illness. A bag study in 2008, sponsored by the Canadian Environment and Plastics Industry Council, found the levels of fungi and bacteria in one reusable bag to be 300% larger than levels considered safe in drinking water. This study does not distinguish between non-hemp bags and jute bags, which have antimakun and antimicrobial properties naturally.
A joint study of the University of Arizona and Limo Loma University 2010 (sponsored by the American Chemistry Council, a trade group advocating on behalf of disposable plastic bag manufacturers) they found that "Reusable shopping bags can become a breeding ground for harmful food bacteria and posing a serious risk to public health ". The study found that 97% of users did not wash them and that more than 50% of the 84 bags contained coliform (bacteria found in the fecal material), while E. coli was found in 12% of bags. This study makes the following recommendations:
- Countries should consider requiring printed instructions on reusable pockets indicating that they need to be cleaned or bleached between usages.
- State and local governments should invest in public education campaigns to alert the public about risks and prevention.
- When using a reusable bag, consumers should be careful to separate raw foods from other food products.
- Consumers may not use reusable food bags for other purposes such as carrying books or sportswear.
- Consumers may not store meat or produce inside their car trunk because higher temperatures increase bacterial growth, which can contaminate a reusable bag.
Further studies show that machines or hand washing without even the presence of bleach is effective in reducing coliform and other bacteria in the pouch to levels below detection.
The Consumer Reports article criticized the 2010 study, questioning the size of the bag samples examined in the study and the questionable hazards of the type and number of bacteria found. Michael Hansen, senior staff scientist at Consumers Union, stated, "Someone who consumes a green salad bag is on average more exposed to these bacteria than if they licked the inside of the dirtiest bag of this research." But Hansen notes that there are some reminders to take from the research. It's easy to spread bacteria from meat, fish, or poultry to other foods - in your kitchen or in your grocery bag. So he thought it wise to bring those things in a disposable bag. Reusable bags are fine for most of the others, but it's a good idea to wash them occasionally.
Product security
In September 2010, "Wegmans Food Markets Inc., owner of the East Coast supermarket chain, announced it would replace a reusable shopping bag after the consumer group discovered the sacks had high lead levels." Bloomberg News also stated that the high level is associated with two special designs, totaling more than 725,000 bags.
Following a report in the Tampa Tribune in November 2010 that increases in lead levels were found in the same reusable bag, the Food and Drug Administration opened an inquiry that responded to calls by environmental groups and US consumers, as well as US Senator Charles Schumer, to investigate reusable bags that are generally distributed by grocery stores and large retail chains. Winn-Dixie remembered their bags after they were quoted directly in the investigation.
In December 2010, Canada-based athletic retailer, Lululemon Athletica, recalled a reusable bag that was distributed since November 2009 because "environmental problems are raised over the proper disposal of reusable bags because of lead content." The Canadian Sears Store announced the recall of a reusable bag because of similar findings on January 6, 2011. On January 12, 2011, the Environmental Health Center announced Disney-themed bags of the US Safeway grocery chain have been found to contain lead levels 15 to 17 times of current federal limits of 300ppm. Safeway recalled bags that had been identified to contain high levels of lead at the end of January 2011.
In January 2011, USA Today published an article based on a report from the Consumer Freedom Center, a front group for the "hospitality industry", bags sold in the US by Bloom, Giant, Giant Eagle, Safeway, Walgreens and wholesale chains others as well as retailers containing lead levels of more than 100 parts per million, the maximum amount allowed under the law in many US states. They have not produced their test methods and data, and many organizations feel this is an attempt to discredit the use of reusable bags. Bloom stopped distributing the bag because of the level of toxicity before the study, but did not remember the bag.
Other concerns have been raised about the safety of reusable bags due to the rare washing and presence of bacteria.
In May 2012, Oregon Public Health published a study in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, tracing the outbreak of the dangerous norovirus to a reusable shopping bag that members of the Beaverton girls football team ride when they share cake.
Legislation and reusable bag
Some governments have encouraged or required the use of reusable shopping bags through plastic bag regulations with prohibitions, recycling mandates, taxes or fees. The law to prevent the use of plastic bags has been passed in parts of Hong Kong, Ireland, South Africa, the United States, Canada, and Taiwan.
In 2002, the Australian federal government studied the use of disposable plastic bags and threatened to ban them if retailers did not voluntarily prohibit their use. In 2003, the government negotiated with the Australian Retailers Association to progressively reduce the use of plastic bags that led to a number of initiatives, including the widespread distribution and promotion of Green Bags.
From 1 October 2011, the Welsh government began to impose a 5p minimum tax on a single-use carrier bag.
In 2012, San Luis Obispo County, CA prohibits disposable plastic bags and begins asking buyers to carry their own bags or pay 10 cents per paper bag. In 2009, the District of Columbia began costing 5 Â ¢ for each disposable bag. In 2012, Portland, Oregon commenced a mandated program to remove disposable payment bags.
By 2015, the Canadian province of Quebec voted in the program to ban disposable bags, but the program should be adopted by each municipality. Toronto has tried a similar program, but was eliminated after a short time.
Fashion trends
Due to the boost of shopping bags that government and supermarkets can reuse, the reusable shopping bags have become one of the new fashion trends. The apparel industry also contributes to making it popular with reusable shopping bags as a substitute for disposable plastic bags. In 2007, the British designer, Anya Hindmarch, $ 15 "I'm Not a Plastic Bag" (an undecided cotton bag) sold out in one day, and got $ 800 on the Internet. The Envirosax brand started producing reusable shopping bags, but has expanded their line with more color and pattern options, in addition to property licensing such as Sesame Street.
The environmental problem, Ostalgie (nostalgia for East Germany), and the general style for retro style have caused a resurgence, in all parts of Germany, from what was once considered a shabby Omas Einkaufsnetz (Grandma's shopping net). The DDR Museum in Berlin has a collection of Einskaufsnetz , and handbags are now often sold as
In terms of consumer behavior, the use of reusable bags is positively correlated with organic purchases and with self-indulgent purchases such as ice cream or cakes.
Choose a reusable shopping bag type
References
Additional readings
- Heckscher M. (July 2, 2008). "Trendy shopping bag with eco-chic style". The Seattle Times .
- Lu L. T. & amp; Hsiao T. Y. & amp; Shang N.C. & amp; Yu Y.H. & amp; Ma HW Country Report: MSW Management for waste minimization in Taiwan: The last two decades . CS1 maint: Using author parameters (links)
- Njeru J., "Urban political ecology of plastic bag waste problems in Nairobi, Kenya"
- Wilson E., "Eco-friendly clothing world?"
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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