Are Reusable Bags THAT Hard to Remember?
Playing on Twitter this morning, I found this great post on the Seventh Generation blog regarding the failure rate of bringing your reusable bags to the store.
I try not to get to judgy-wudgy, but I am who I am, and I judge. Needless to say, I was a bit dismayed reading how people say remembering to use their bags at the grocer is so hard, so inconvenient, or just simply not on their mind.
Ann of Staten Island, New York, shuns plastic when she picks up her morning papers and coffee but admits to rarely using the shopping bag she carries in her purse. Alan, our mutual friend in L.A., uses his canvas bags as much as he can…that is, when he doesn’t forget to take them out of the car: “Hey, I’m 48 and the mind goes.”
One woman said using reusable totes is fine if you only shop for a tiny family, but a larger family is too difficult:
“The totes they sell at most places are so small it’s annoying, so you have to bring a ton of them. If I’m going to the store for something small I’ll take one. But for a regular grocery shopping expedition? With a family of five, it’s just impossible.”
This disheartens me. My response to her is she’s simply using the wrong bags. I agree the major inexpensive grocery chains tend not to provide decent size ~ or more importantly ~ decent quality reusable bags. They are small and shred easily. I have a large cloth tote, however, thrift stores always have large canvas totes you can buy for super cheap, make your own, or use the great (and cheap ~ $1) bags from Whole Foods that are made so sturdy! We have 15 of them and have had to load up many of them when shopping for big family weekends.
Now, I will say I have left them in my trunk before. That is becoming so infrequent it is almost never the case now. Once, I did leave a clothing store and realize I never used the nicely folded Envirosax bag I had tucked into my purse.
It really is about getting your mind in the groove so it feels unnatural to take disposable bags. As for grocer’s, in the rare event I forget my bags or do not bring in enough (my usual problem), I just load the cart back up (or my arms) and carry my goods that way until I get back to my car. A cashier last week says he has more and more customers who do the same thing. This act helps ingrain the habit and reminds me how good I feel in making this tiny decision, and knowing that I am not alone makes me even happier.
I apologize sincerely if I sound haughty about the issue. I certainly am no green Saint, and I suppose my vigilance at the bag issue helps for the fact that I have several glaring gaps in my sustainability routine. I just do not see age (he was kidding though), family size, or constantly forgetting you have your bags until the cashier’s already loaded it all in plastic as legitimate arguments for shrugging it off.
Judgy wudgy.
Perhaps I was actually most disheartened by the thought that many who purchase reusable bags only do so out of feeling the pressure of the “green guilt”. If you buy something merely because peer pressure and enviro-guilt, of course you will have a hard time using it. I can imagine each time you see them or pull the bags out, a little chunk of resentment hardens inside your gut. Unfortunate. That made me more sensitive to the rest of the article, I suppose.
On the contrary, as for the new mother who said she not only chooses to take the disposable plastic bags but grabs extras at the store too… well, I have no judgement on her. I have no idea what having a child in diapers is like and wonder myself how much I will sacrifice for convenience if I am one day blessed with the joys and challenges of a new baby.
What do you think? Are any of these solid arguments for not using bags? Should the new mom think longer-term than to justify using plastic bags as well? Do you have any suggestions for how to remember your bags while you shop? Am I a green snob for knocking bag owners who rarely use their bags?
Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue
I think with anything creating change is harder because its not fully embraced by corporations. Businesses accept it now, because its an income avenue. Stores sell small bags for a dollar or two.
For small purchases, these reusable bags are perfect, but for the general population plastic and paper bags just work.
Ashley, great stuff I’m reading here. Your passion is to be admired AND RESPECTED. I won’t make any promises, but maybe I can train myself to go bagless. I don’t see the problem with large purchases when there are shopping carts available. When a person gets home, they can use a laundry basket or reusable bags to carry their goods inside, even if they forgot them at the store or didn’t have enough of them. A laundry basket can be kept in the trunk of most vehicles. It seems to me like a matter of not only talking the talk, but also walking the walk. Either one cares enough to do it…or not! I try harder each day to truely care. be patient with me. baby steps.