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4 Tips to Kick Plastic Shopping Bags Forever

4 Tips to Kick Plastic Shopping Bags Forever

The problem with plastic shopping bags is that it's just too easy to take one when offered, but don't be a bag! BYO

Giving them up does take a little reorganising of your routine, but it's really just like changing any habit.

Incredibly, something that might have seemed hard becomes easy and even enjoyable. 

Giving them up does take a little reorganising of your routine, but it's really just like changing any habit and may not be as hard as you think. Here's a few tips to actually see you on your way to a plastic free shop. 


  1. When you do your shopping list, make sure ‘recycle soft plastics’ is always on your list.  
  2. Get yourself a decent bag as your 'main shopping bag'- something you really love and will use all the time. Hang it in your pantry and put ALL your plastic bags (shopping, bread, plastic wrap, newspaper bags) inside it, ready for when you next go to the supermarket. That way, you can put your soft plastics in the recycle bin out front as you enter the supermarket for your next shop. 
  3. Put a couple of the small fold-able reusable bags in your hand bag and/or briefcase. Get something simple and durable like an Envirosax so it takes up no space and is small enough for its presence not to annoy you. Now you have the confidence to go anywhere knowing that even at work, you have a trusty bag with you. 
  4. Leave a couple of reusable bags in your car boot - and preferably make them supermarket freezer bags, especially if you live in a warmer climate.



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Science Notes

What kind of bag is the best to use instead of plastic bags with? Use anything reusable and durable.  

All reusable shopping bags have pros and cons when considering the carbon footprint of their manufacture, longevity and the sustainability of the source materials.

Go with the type and style that suits your personal taste because you will be more likely to use it.

Related Tip

Be aware of biodegradable and degradable plastic bags are not be as green as they seem.

Biodegradable bags are typically made from things like corn and are technically compostable, but they often need light and or heat to break down.

Often the very organisms required to break them down cannot survive in oxygen depleted landfill environments so the degradation process is extremely slow and they convert to methane.