Whole Foods Market to phase-out Plastic Bags
Whole Foods Market, the world’s largest natural-food retailer just announced that they will be eliminating plastic bags from all of it’s stores. Whole Foods aim to be plastic bag-free by April 22 this year (which happens to be Earth Day).
Given Whole Foods have 270 stores throughout U.S., Canada, and the U.K., this should have a bit of an impact. They will be the first supermarket in the U.S. to completely ban plastic bags. Whole Foods have already eliminated plastc bags from its San Francisco, Toronto and Austin stores.
Over the next 3 months, Whole Foods will be phasing out their plastic bag inventories and stocking more reusable bags, which can be purchased. The 100% recycled paper bags will still be used. They will also offer a 10 cent refund to those customers who bring their own bags.
The number of plastic bags being used globally each year is mind boggling and they are having an enormous impact on the natural environment. I think we should be doing everything we can to eliminate them. Paper bags aren’t the answer either - they can be just as harmful to the environment as plastic bags.
For many people, this can be very confusing - the common perception is that paper is better than plastic. This is why I wrote this post which discusses what to look for in an eco-friendly grocery bag.
Tags: plastic bags, Sustainability
