Progress is Slow but Steady

Gleaned from the watchdogs at Reusablebags.com, some hopeful progress on plastic bag litter, and some posturing to watch out for….

October 2, 2009, USA Today reported an announcement by Target that it would start offering a 5-cent discount for every reusable bag customers use to pack their purchases. An earlier pilot test with 100 Target stores showed a 58% reduction in the number of plastic bags used.

Also in October, CVS Pharmacies started offering customers incentives for bringing reusable bags, their green bag card system. For every four shopping trips with a cloth reusable bag, customers get a coupon for $1.

Because the plastic bag industry is big business, in Canada, the Environment and Plastics Industry Council published an alarming report that your eco-friendly shopping bag could be making you sick. Consider the source.

The report concluded that reusable grocery bags are "a breeding ground for bacteria and pose a public health risk" because of high counts of yeast, molds and bacteria. Duh! Our clothes have high levels of bacteria if we don’t wash them. Common sense practices like washing your reusable bag and using plastic with leaky meats can reduce contaminants. When you're choosing a reusable shopping bag, avoid the cheap ones and select-or make-durable bags that withstand washing.