That's great! I bought those super cute Envirosax for my forays to the market- they are fabulous. I'm glad stores are stepping up to the plate to get rid/publicly discourage plastic bags. Kinda like IKEA who charges for the bags to in an attempt to dissuade the consumer. I like where this is trending.

yumsugar, did you get this from my blog in "Minimal Harm - For the Love of the Planet?"

This is awesome! All stores should be doing this.

This is a great idea but maybe a TAD extreme...

That's great.

Yay! I was happy to hear about this although paper bags still aren't good, it's a step in the right direction!

Yes, plastic bags are a problem. If they would put in more than one item per bag when bagging your groceries we wouldn't have such a problem either...

So here's my problem with the BYOB thing...

It's great if you live somewhere where you can get to the grocery store whenever you want. I can't. I live about a 20 minute walk from the grocery store, which is too far for me to haul home a week's worth of groceries. I don't own a car. My fiance does, but he works long hours and is on call every third night, so we do our grocery shopping in bulk -- read, twice, max three times a month, to buy everything we need. Sure, if I was just popping in to buy ingredients for dinner for one night, I'd have no problem bringing my own bag. But when you do all your shopping in bulk, I usually come home with 12 or so grocery bags. You cannot expect me to walk in the store with 12 tote bags on my shoulder -- I couldn't even carry them back out, since they take up more room in your hand then a grocery bag.

Sorry, but this isn't practical for the way I shop, and I am positive that I'm not alone.

I LOVE my Envirosax bags, and I use them everywhere. I wish every store would ban the plastic bags as it would leave a major footprint in the right direction to promote conservation and recycling.

I bought the retro style with free shipping, and it came out to $35 for 5 bags delivered to me (including the cute matching carrying pouch), that's less than $7 each and worth a WHOLE LOT MORE than that to Mother Nature... if these last me for 5 or 10 years of heavy grocery use, I could be saving 5000 plastic bags - now multiply that times everyone who shops at Whole Foods who is doing the same, and WOWOWOWOWOEEEEE!

Way to go!!

I've seen people bring in 10 or more fabric bags into the grocery store. And fabric bags are stronger and hold more, so you may not need as many!

I think it's a great idea! I always bring my own nylon grocery bags to the supermarket.

I like this.

Does anyone know how grocery stores feel about you bringing bags from other stores?? One of the stores around here (stop and shop) sells nice re-usable bags for $1 with a big "stop and shop" logo on the side. I've bought several of them, but I've been wary of taking them to whole foods or shaws because I don't want people glaring at me. Maybe I'm being a wimp...but, who am I kidding? I am a wimp.

I like this idea but what will I use to pick up dog poop?

This is great news! I always use cloth reusable grocery bags. In Europe you get charged for your bags--I wish they would do that here everywhere!!

I love the idea.

Julieulie, although I see where you are coming from I have found that good quality bags marketed as reusable grocery bags are MUCH bigger and sturdier than plastic and paper. Specifically Whole Foods green bags. Those are what I use and I LOVE them.

Marynanabananas, as I said I use Whole Foods bags but don't live remotely close to a Whole Foods, they were a christmas present last year that I asked for from my brother and sister-in-law, I use them at my local grocery store and they don't care a bit. They recently started selling bags of their own but are tiny in comparison. Usually the baggers love using our bags, they HATE dealing with the plastic and some find it "fun" to try and fit everything in our "huge" bags. I also bring the bags to Frazier Farms (formerly Sprouts and formerly Henry's) and they still give me a $.05 per bag we fill up at their store.

I have five different bags, from five different stores. Only once has a bagger made a comment, but it was mostly because the bag was actually superior than theirs (it's an insulated bag and holds twice the amount).

They actually do hold more than their paper counterpart, and when we go to the grocery store, we just grab the bag of bags by the door (this way we are only carrying one bag, which we promptly put into the front of the cart anyways). If we're doing a big haul (or buying large items) we sometime have to supplement it with paper bags.

We went through a spell of forgetting to take them with us, so now we leave one in the car, i have one in my purse (you can get ones that fold up and fit in your wallet), and yumjimmy carries one in his computer bag.

Oh and precious p, i actually didn't see your post — i like to play nice, i'd have credited you if i did — but i just checked it out, good find!

I have used canvas bags for a few years now, and just recently purchased reusable produce bags. They are great!

Julieulie, my mom has the same problem that you describe. She now just brings back the plastic bags her groceries were bagged in the time before and reuses those. They're much easier to carry and they last a pretty long time.

love the idea....i should be doing my own tote already but alas i'm a lazy a** and still use plastic.....glad whole foods is pushing me to change.....

hey julieulie.... some grocery stores deliver....you might be able to look into that....also in ny metro area we have freshdirect.com an online grocer that delivers...happy shopping!

I have one reuseable bag, and I have been thinking about buying several more. This post is a great reminder!

Great news from Whole Foods! I make a concerted effort to bring my own bags no matter where I shop. Let's hope other stores follow their lead.

I'm so forgetful I'd never remember to bring my own bag. I get paper when I'm at the grocery store and I reuse them a lot. The best part about Whole Foods, though, is that it's right next door to my apt and I often go there for only a few items and ask for no bag and just carry my groceries home. That's just as good, right?

I think this is a good thing...I have several canvas tote bags that I bought for grocery shopping but I forget them sometimes.

At least now when I got to Whole Foods, I'll remember that I HAVE to bring them!

Maybe I'm stupid but can't you shove several empty canvas or mesh bags into one and just carry that? Why would anyone sling all of them over their shoulder? haha. I hate plastic bags. I always ask for the paper and then I use the paper ones to recycle my mail and paper products at home- just dump them in the paper grocery bag and when it's full chuck the whole thing into recycling... so I'm getting two uses out of each bag, which is recycled paper in the first place.

For dog poop- there are small recyclable bags sold for this purpose, some even lemon scented...

http://www.poopbags.com/index.html is one example. My upscale pet shop sells them too.

I'm with julieulie...

I use some bags I got at whole foods - I think they were a dollar. After I put my groceries away I hang the bags on the inside of my door so I don't forget put them in my car the next time I go outside (I live in the city so I usually dont get parking close to my house.)

Bringing your own bags is certainly the best thing for the environment. I would also petition banning useless packaging, in general.

My problem is with banning plastic bags. Like it or not, a majority of shoppers will not be re-using bags. They will be taking bags home, possibly recyling them, or possibly just trashing them. Life cycle analysis is not 100% conclusive, but most studies suggest that plastic bags consume less energy than paper.

It is VERY VERY important to consider the whole life cycle of a material when considering its environmental impact.

Here is one website that discusses it. However, I recommend doing your own research on the issue.
http://www.ilea.org/lcas/franklin1990.html

I have a Target reusable bag that I take everywhere. Sometimes I feel like a traitor when I take it to Wal Mart but no one has said anything.

The only thing that I wonder about this is whether they'll start offering smaller paper bags, because they don't make as much sense if you're getting only a couple of things. Good job Whole Foods though!

AbbyHintz, I was just going to say exactly what you did. I work in an organic grocery store in my city, and it's funny how everyone thinks that paper bags are "better". Well, yes, they can be recycled, but so can plastic, and to be honest, a lot of people I know who use plastic DO re-use their bags - they don't just simply throw them out! Also, like you mentioned, paper bags use a lot more energy, and another thing I noticed is that they are worn out more easily, therefore lessening the life of the bag overall and also reducing the amount of times you can reuse the bag.

So overall, I say - go for plastic if you're willing to recycle and reuse it, but if you don't mind, just do cloth - it's stronger, lasts waaay longer, and holds more!

why don't more people bring backpacks? i have a pretty strong/large capacity one that looks small when it doesn't have much in it and my roommie brings his too and we never need to get plastic bags - oh, and if we know we need a lot we put tote bags in our backpacks. we are a good 20 minutes walk from the grocery store or take the bus if we have heavier things/decide to go to china town rather than little india (18 blocks away) or the local organic store (9 blocks away) which are both in walking distance. backpacks take up less room than many bags do. what pisses me off is that the stores that give discounts for bringing your own tote bags do not do so for backpacks (well, i haven't asked, actually). what's the deal?

i am wondering what people do for other items - clothes, household things etc?!do you take tote bags for those things too? i pretty much always have my backpack with me since i am usually stopping somewhere after school.

things like this wont be a help unless it is made important everywhere

this is a great idea & all retailers should follow suit...but sometimes i put the reuseable bag away so i can get the plastic bags and use them as garbage bags (why buy them just to throw them out).

the next step should be urban friendly composting initiatives so city dwellers will be able to trash less. (suburban dwellers should already be composting!)

I live in Belgium and every store makes you pay for bags since the beginning of 2007. It takes some getting used but it so much better for the environment! I just have reusable bags from my favourite market and when I go somewhere else with those bags, it really doesn't matter =)

tdamji - I worked in retail several years ago, and they always wanted us to put their purchased items in the bags with our store logo on it. I think they wanted the advertising (if people are carrying the bags around, it's sort of like an ad) and it shows other store employees that the item wasn't stolen. How retail stores feel about this probably varies from store to store though.

mudnessa - thanks for the advice. I'll start using my re-usuable bags everywhere and stop worrying so much.

i actually have 2 whole foods bags that I bought from them, they're great bc they fold into a nice neat zip up pouch!! and it has a front pocket and it's soft and holds a TON of stuff.
yeah, plastic bags are a waste and they tear easy! buy the more durable reusable cloth bags

"the next step should be urban friendly composting initiatives so city dwellers will be able to trash less. (suburban dwellers should already be composting!)"

Ultress I could not agree with you more! I have been thinking about this lately and wondering why there isn't a better job done.

"I like this idea but what will I use to pick up dog poop?"

Hee! I agree. I re-use all of my plastic bags, to the point where they cannot be used again, whether it's for dog poop or anything else. I always bring in the paper bags to Whole Foods though.

that is awesome I wish every store would follow suit

I don't shop at whole foods but I do love the idea. hopefully more of the small grocery stores will catch on and maybe eventually the larger mega stores someday. that last part might be wishful thinking though

I do think it is a good idea, I think stores should just charge for plastic bags, I bet alot less people would use them. I have 4 bags I love to use and hate it when I forget them!

Just another reason I wish we had a Whole Foods here. Sigh. I wonder what first-time shoppers will do when they get to the counter and the cashier tells them they have to buy a bag to carry their groceries out with. I'd be pretty upset if I was blind-sided by that, so I hope they make it clear upon arrival at the store.

amen! they weren't even useful in the first place

I tend to use those "evil" pastic bag to seal up diapers (daycare). Other wise I would get cute material bags to use over and over.

I think this is great. Every little bit can help the enviroment.

Trader Joes sells reusable bags as well. So lately when I go shopping for food about once a week. I take the bags when I go grocery shopping. I agree the reusable bags are stronger than the plastic bags.

NO BAD NEWS! I like plastic bags: I always get them!!! ha ha!

I have some really sturdy cloth/canvas bags that I bought from Wal-Mart for $1 each. They hold quite a bit and I can even sling them over my shoulder in order to haul in the paper bags when I do major shopping. Once unloaded, I put them on my front door handle to take into my car the next time I go out. Come on...for $1, you can't go wrong.

I also like the incentive to get money back. 5 cents may not seem like a lot, but add it up over the course of a year, for every bag brought it, you're getting something back...and on the plus-side, you don't have to claim it as income!

I love the idea. Whole Foods in Austin, TX banned them a year ago and because it did so well they apparently have decided to spread it to all their stores. I use fabric bags from Whole Foods, Half Price Books and HEB to shop at many different stores. The bags make great totes as well so I get alot of use out of them. Very cool.

THAT'S GREAT NEWS. I KEEP MY CANVAS GROCERY STORE BAG IN MY PURSE AT ALL TIMES BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOU'LL MAKE AN UNEXPECTED TRIP TO THE STORE. I WISH ALL GROCERY STORES WOULD BAN PLASTIC BAGS. THEY TAKE SOOO LONG TO DECOMPOSE...

I know it's better for the environment not to offer plastic bags, but that's how I pick up dog poop!