Eco bags

[snowbelle15]

No, I reuse the plastic bags though. I usually take two or three bags with me to the store and use them. But I would like to start using the reusable bags.

[pitc9]

I use them all the time. I have 8 of them and always leave at least 1 in my car at all times!

This summer I am going to start doing something about the dog poop. I clean up poop and put it in plastic grocery bags to throw out and it bothers me. (Besides, I don't have many plastic bags left! )
I need to look into a composter, or find biodegradable bags that won't break the bank.

[gini]

One of my clients had special bags made up that he had designed for Christmas as gifts. I was the happy recipient of three of them. I bought a slightly larger one from Petco.

They are so much easier to handle than plastic bags and your groceries don't fall out as they do in plastic bags when you are driving.

When I get home I unload them - then put them right by the front door so next time I need to go out - I put them back in the car.

I am hoping that they soon ban the plastic bags but I do use the ones that I get for kitty litter. The only problem is that some of the bags are so flimsy that they won't hold the litter.

[Pembroke_Corgi]

I use them when I remember to take them! But, when we do get plastic or paper bags, they are always used. The plastic for scooping kitty litter and the paper for holding recyclables.

It's not at all uncommon to see people bringing in their own bags here, and in fact Denver is considering legislation to charge 10 cents per bag at grocery stores to encourage people to use less.

[Catty1]

What I did was go to my local hardware/pet/department/grocery store and ask for the biodegradable ones.

If nothing else, it creates demand!

I find them cost effective - spending a tiny bit to lighten my footprint - and any plastic grocery bags I have, I just plain recycle. Grocery stores and recycle depots often take them - just ask.

[smokey the elder]

I use the plastic ones for cleaning the litter boxes. The problem with re-using the plastic ones for groceries is that heavy loads cause the belly seam (bottom) to fail, weakening the bag. I hate when the bags break! The newspaper bags are too skinny and flimsy. If they were bigger I'd use them.

I use reusable bags for the farmer's market, though.

[Catty1]

smokey - the stores that sell the reusable bags should also have small bins to put the bags in. The one I got was $5 or something and is well worth the price.

You can even use a small Rubbermaid container bin.

Regular grocery plastic takes 100 years to break down, so I am glad that alternatives are available.

[sirrahbed]

I am *trying* - bought 5 cloth totes from our discount house (about a dollar each) and just keep forgetting to bring them - so put them out in the truck when I saw this post. I hope to make it a habit. As for the plastic bags I accumulate - I double them and use them when scooping the cat boxes. Paper bags get reused to wrap packages. The new tote bags should be really nice to have once I get that habit established. So far, I have never seen anyone actually using them in the grocery stores or anywhere else - but glad to read that many are getting into it.

[Logan]

Use them all the time! And I love them! I'm seeing more and more folks bringing their own bags to the store and some of our stores give you credit for bringing your own bags, too.

[RedHedd]

Yes, we use them in San Francisco. Plastic bags have been outlawed since last year sometime. I reuse my paper bags too. I've always hated tne crackling noise the plastic bags make and they're just unweildy and cumbersome when they load groceries into them.

[carole]

Yes i do use them for my supermarket shopping,they are great too, i still do have plenty of plastic bags around though,I try to do my best if i can.