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Guestblog: About those “Cloth” Shopping Bags
February 27, 2008
by Katharine Leis.
Have you noticed that most every grocery store now has fancy cloth looking bags with their name on them? Most are 99 cents to $2.49, and invite shoppers to become “green” by buying and using one of these reusable bags.
The problem is…they’re plastic!
Polypropylene to be exact…which is made from ethylene, a byproduct of oil, like any other plastic.
Also, while the stores say they’ll last 2 years or so, they more than likely will tear long before then. Many are made cheaply, and won’t stand up to sharp corners, heavy weights, and washing machines for long.
But they’re recyclable, right?
Technically, yes. Yet, we’ve scoured the Internet looking for places in the US that will actually take Post Consumer Polypropylene and have not found one yet.
Not one.
There are places that will buy misprints and scraps, and post industrial polypropylene, but not the bags that are flying off the shelves at the grocery stores. Wegmans out of NY reportedly sold some 300 000 of them in their first week’s launch alone.
So what happens in a year or so when all these bags fall apart?
They’ll end up as garbage.
Essentially, they’ve taken the plastic bags you get for free, put some together and pressed them to look like cloth, and sold them to you. It’s kind of like delaying when the garbage will hit the dump, and getting you to pay for it.
The real answer is to use cotton bags. Sturdy ones that are large and will stand up to regular use and washing.
We really don’t mind if you use other brands…honestly. Just please, use cotton bags!
Some brands we’ve found that are great are EcoBags, Port and Company, Oprah’s Groceries bag (which is organic), and Enviro-Tote. They are all well made and will last you for your money.
With our product, Planet Bag, we tried to make the perfect answer to “if not paper or plastic, then what?”
-The Planet Bag is affordable, around $5 when purchased in the 3 pack or set of 6, and $6.95 when purchased singly.
-The Planet Bag is large. Many of the cotton bags out there are small and have short handles. The Planet Bag is 15″ x 16″ x 3″, with 28″ finished handles. Each one will hold about as much as 3 plastic bags would. “Finished” handles means that they are sewn on both sides, and double X stitched to the bag. They are really long, so that you can carry your groceries on your shoulder and be hands-free when going from your car to your front door. Have you ever tried to fumble with your keys while holding plastic or paper bags? No fun! The 3″ floor of the bag means that you can put wider items in it, and also it won’t fall over when you put it in the car.
-The Planet Bag is what we feel to be the perfect thickness. A thin bag is useless, but a bag too thick is bulky and not really convenient to keep anywhere. The Planet Bag is the perfect balance between sturdy yet lightweight. It will hold up yet not take up too much space when not in use.
So there you have it. Honestly, it’s so sad to see so many people going out and buying what they think is so much better for the environment. We wish there was a way to communicate on a huge level that these “green” grocery store bags are not good. Please do tell people and thank you again for using The Planet Bag…or any other good quality cotton bag.
Visit: http://theplanetbag.com/ for more info or to purchase The Planet Bag!
[[Editor’s note: Katharine Leis is a multi-talented, enviro-friendly artist who among her many accomplishments has created a red-hot enviro-product, The Planet Bag. She is also an award winning film-maker, an actress, a blogger, and comedy writer. Check out her short film Foobie Jesus — it’s a hoot.]]
Guestblog: About those “Cloth” Shopping Bags
February 27, 2008
by Katharine Leis.
Have you noticed that most every grocery store now has fancy cloth looking bags with their name on them? Most are 99 cents to $2.49, and invite shoppers to become “green” by buying and using one of these reusable bags.
The problem is…they’re plastic!
Polypropylene to be exact…which is made from ethylene, a byproduct of oil, like any other plastic.
Also, while the stores say they’ll last 2 years or so, they more than likely will tear long before then. Many are made cheaply, and won’t stand up to sharp corners, heavy weights, and washing machines for long.
But they’re recyclable, right?
Technically, yes. Yet, we’ve scoured the Internet looking for places in the US that will actually take Post Consumer Polypropylene and have not found one yet.
Not one.
There are places that will buy misprints and scraps, and post industrial polypropylene, but not the bags that are flying off the shelves at the grocery stores. Wegmans out of NY reportedly sold some 300 000 of them in their first week’s launch alone.
So what happens in a year or so when all these bags fall apart?
They’ll end up as garbage.
Essentially, they’ve taken the plastic bags you get for free, put some together and pressed them to look like cloth, and sold them to you. It’s kind of like delaying when the garbage will hit the dump, and getting you to pay for it.
The real answer is to use cotton bags. Sturdy ones that are large and will stand up to regular use and washing.
We really don’t mind if you use other brands…honestly. Just please, use cotton bags!
Some brands we’ve found that are great are EcoBags, Port and Company, Oprah’s Groceries bag (which is organic), and Enviro-Tote. They are all well made and will last you for your money.
With our product, Planet Bag, we tried to make the perfect answer to “if not paper or plastic, then what?”
-The Planet Bag is affordable, around $5 when purchased in the 3 pack or set of 6, and $6.95 when purchased singly.
-The Planet Bag is large. Many of the cotton bags out there are small and have short handles. The Planet Bag is 15″ x 16″ x 3″, with 28″ finished handles. Each one will hold about as much as 3 plastic bags would. “Finished” handles means that they are sewn on both sides, and double X stitched to the bag. They are really long, so that you can carry your groceries on your shoulder and be hands-free when going from your car to your front door. Have you ever tried to fumble with your keys while holding plastic or paper bags? No fun! The 3″ floor of the bag means that you can put wider items in it, and also it won’t fall over when you put it in the car.
-The Planet Bag is what we feel to be the perfect thickness. A thin bag is useless, but a bag too thick is bulky and not really convenient to keep anywhere. The Planet Bag is the perfect balance between sturdy yet lightweight. It will hold up yet not take up too much space when not in use.
So there you have it. Honestly, it’s so sad to see so many people going out and buying what they think is so much better for the environment. We wish there was a way to communicate on a huge level that these “green” grocery store bags are not good. Please do tell people and thank you again for using The Planet Bag…or any other good quality cotton bag.
Visit: http://theplanetbag.com/ for more info or to purchase The Planet Bag!
[[Editor’s note: Katharine Leis is a multi-talented, enviro-friendly artist who among her many accomplishments has created a red-hot enviro-product, The Planet Bag. She is also an award winning film-maker, an actress, a blogger, and comedy writer. Check out her short film Foobie Jesus — it’s a hoot.]]
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