Green Savings Are In The Bag

An innovative new reusable shopping bag has been launched in a bid to reduce the estimated 13 billion plastic carrier bags used by shoppers in the UK every year.

[UKPRwire, Thu Sep 20 2007] An innovative new reusable shopping bag has been launched in a bid to reduce the estimated 13 billion plastic carrier bags used by shoppers in the UK every year. The bag, designed by Geccobags, could cut the average supermarket shopper’s annual consumption of throw away plastic bags by 70%, if used once a week on an average shop. The launch comes as London considers a tax or even a complete ban on disposable plastic bags in the capital.

Geccobags argue that small lifestyle changes by large numbers of people can have a major impact in reducing waste and the creation of carbon, the main cause of global warming. The Geccobag, which holds the equivalent of three plastic carrier bags, opens out to clip inside a supermarket trolley. This, say the makers, not only cuts the average shopper’s consumption of plastic carrier bags, estimated to be 220 per year, but also reduces customer checkout time by up to 20%, making for a less stressful shopping experience. “The majority of plastic carrier bags go straight to landfill. Although these make up only a small percentage of total plastic waste, tackling the issue will help raise people’s awareness of wider issues surrounding our unsustainable throw away society”, says Geccobags managing director Georgina Tuson-Little.

London Councils last week announced a consultation exercise to gauge public views on a ban or a tax on throw away plastic bags. This follows the success of a similar tax levied in Ireland, where annual plastic bag consumption fell by 90% following the introduction of a tax in 2002. In the UK, supermarkets have a voluntary agreement with the Government to reduce the environmental impact of carrier bags by a quarter by 2008. However, recent research in The Grocer suggests some supermarkets are actually increasing their use of plastic bags when delivering food to customers who shop online.