How to Choose Reusable Carrier Bags

Sea creatures such as turtles are eating plastic bags, which are killing them.

Yesterday I took a little look about some of the ways plastic is causing problems and what we can do with the plastic bags we have.

While they might not be our biggest problem plastic bags are starting to become a real danger to animals and they are killing and harming sea life around the British Isles as well as in the rest of the world.

It's not just animals that are threatened by plastic bags floating around freely, in Bangkok careless use and disposal of plastic bags clogged the sewers, posing a flood risk.

Bangladesh has banned the plastic carrier bag for similar reasons.

The problem of plastic bags is also an easy problem to fix.  It's not difficult to stop using disposable plastic bags. Other kinds of disposable bags aren't a great idea either because paper, for instance, needs much more energy to produce than plastic, so it's worse for Global Warming, which is an even bigger problem than plastic.

There is a variety of alternatives to disposable carrier bags.

Most supermarkets now sell strong jute bags with a plastic lining that will last for years. These are useful if you need your bag to be waterproof in case of leaks and spills.  They aren't ideal from the environmental point of view because bits of that plastic lining will find it's way into the environment eventually, but they can last 10 years or more, so you're saving a lot of single use carrier bags including the strong ones. You're also saving the energy that would have been needed to make them.

If you're not sure you need this kind of bag wait until you do need one as they should be easy enough to buy when you're in the supermarket. Some other shops also sell them.




If you want to have a carrier bag to hand at all times a small, light foldable one might be the best thing for your requirements.

About 10 years ago there was a campaign to ban the single use plastic carrier bags and Onya bags, made from parachute material, which was strong and lightweight. These are hard to come by in the UK now.  They are still available in Australia but are now made from recycled drinks bottles.

Buying bags made from recycled material is probably the most environmentally friendly thing to do, so long as the bags are fit for purpose and you will use them. It also makes recycling worthwhile.






Cotton bags aren't such a good idea as they are heavier, less water resistant and growing cotton uses a lot of water in countries where water is in short supply. If the cotton isn't organic a lot of chemicals are likely to have been used to grow it, which probably contribute to pollution and may be a health risk for those who grow it. If you already have a cotton bag it might be just the thing for buying and storing bread without using plastic.

There is a wide choice of foldable and other reusable bags available.

Ethical Superstore have a good selection of foldable bags, many made from recycled materials.

Look for eco tote bags on Amazon.

Little drawstring net bags can be useful for buying fruit and veg as well as bread rolls and small loaves.  This one was made by Onya but other makes are more readily available, unless you live in Australia.










Remember, buying so much as most of us do is one of our biggest problems, so don't rush out and buy anything just yet. Use up the carrier bags you do have first. Think about other bags you already have.  Look around for the most sustainable choice of suitable bags while you're doing that.

Did I forget anything important about we should think of when choosing reusable bags?  Let us know in the comments section.

Next time I'll be looking at other single use plastic items that are easy to do without.