Supermarkets in talks to charge for plastic bags

[starlight1968sg]

My qn is whether we will have to buy plastic bags as bin liner?

[sharonkhoo]

starlight1968sg:

My qn is whether we will have to buy plastic bags as bin liner?

Yes, I suppose. Even if you still get a few plastic bags from supermarkets, you will need to pay for them once the rule kicks in. And buying bin liners in bulk will be cheaper than buying them from supermarkets one at a time.

But you can reuse the plastic bags which you get with your shopping - eg. the fruits/produce bags, bread bags, toilet paper bags etc. Some families may find these bags rather small and may have to use more than 1 in a day, but small families should manage OK. I use 1 produce or bread bag a day for kitchen refuse, and only use a supermarket bag for trash when I am doing a lot of cooking or cutting a lot of fruits. I use 1 supermarket bag a week for wastepaper bin stuff (empty the 4 bins into 1 bag instead of throwing all 4 plastic bag bin liners away). I encourage my family to recycle all cans, plastics, cardboard and paper (and use another supermarket plastic bag every week for this) to reduce the amount of stuff that goes into the wastepaper baskets or kitchen trash. It takes a little getting used to, but once it becomes a habit, it's not that difficult, and you won't need to purchase many plastic bags. I've lived in the UK and China, both of which charged for plastic bags, and it just becomes a way of life. I would have a pack of purchased bin liners on standby but didn't have to use them often. And think of the raw materials saved, the carbon dioxide not produced and the litter (and wildlife deaths) avoided.

For low income families, I'm sure we can find a way to provide reusable bags for them. Perhaps social welfare organisations can collect donations of bags and hand them out every now and then.

[lee_yl]

I am all for supermarkets to charge 10c or 20c per plastic bag. It is long overdue.


Our govt did not step in earlier because our govt is fundamentally economical in nature and does not quite believe in environment protection

I bring my own recycling bags (those bought from NTUC) to the supermarkets when I know I need to buy lots of groceries.

I started BYOB habit a few years back when NTUC first started to charge customers 10c per bag. Back then, I recall seeing more and more aunties BYOB when paying at cashier. However, the prog was terminated shortly, likely after customers complain.

If organizations like IKEA or Bossinis are charging for bags (for years already) but customers still throng there, why should supermarkets worry?

[sharonkhoo]

Jennifer:

Next is how to bring containers to buy raw meat/fish?

I think I am going to use more water :nailbite:

I think there plastic bags will still be allowed for raw meat and wet produce. Most countries with plastic bag laws allow this. The aim of the laws is to reduce the use of plastic bags, not eliminate their use completely.

[starlight1968sg]

Agreed that it is the mindset and habit issue

I use plastic bags as bin liner. I use a plastic bag per day. As for lining waste paper baskets, I use the smaller ones and hardly change them because they are mainly fried “rubbish”. It is the kitchen bin that am concerned with
Yes, other countries including some parts of Malaysia are already charging for plastic bags and we are admittedly late in this

[sharonkhoo]

I lived in China from before the plastic bag laws were introduced, till after. The change in behaviour was fast, and it didn’t take long for people to adjust. Before, many people were just like in Singapore - plastic bags were handed out liberally at supermarkets, with many items being separated even if they were already sealed in their own plastic packaging, lots of double-bagging even if it wasn’t necessary etc. People would use them liberally, bagging and throwing trash several times a day even if the bag wasn’t full. After the law kicked in, people found that they could make do with just 1 plastic bag instead of 3 or 4 when shopping, and more people started bringing reusable bags. There was a upsurge in "upcycling" old t-shirts and other fabrics to make individualised shopping bags. I think it’s better to bite the bullet and change our ways quickly rather than trying to make it "easy" and have it drag on.

[Nebbermind]

starlight1968sg:

Agreed that it is the mindset and habit issue

I use plastic bags as bin liner. I use a plastic bag per day. As for lining waste paper baskets, I use the smaller ones and hardly change them because they are mainly fried “rubbish”. It is the kitchen bin that am concerned with
Yes, other countries including some parts of Malaysia are already charging for plastic bags and we are admittedly late in this

They only charge on certain day of the week, right?

[Nebbermind]

lee_yl:

I am all for supermarkets to charge 10c or 20c per plastic bag. It is long overdue.


Our govt did not step in earlier because our govt is fundamentally economical in nature and does not quite believe in environment protection

I bring my own recycling bags (those bought from NTUC) to the supermarkets when I know I need to buy lots of groceries.

I started BYOB habit a few years back when NTUC first started to charge customers 10c per bag. Back then, I recall seeing more and more aunties BYOB when paying at cashier. However, the prog was terminated shortly, likely after customers complain.

If organizations like IKEA or Bossinis are charging for bags (for years already) but customers still throng there, why should supermarkets worry?

They had BYOB day some years back, didn't they? Guess it didn't work well.
As for IKEA, I guess most of the shoppers planned their trip there. For supermarket, I believe many just pop in to grab a few things on the way home or during lunch so I think it's quite diff.

[Nebbermind]

I think people generally LOVE the supermarket plastic bags!

Some of the shoppers will ask for an extra bag or 2…and the cashier very often offer to ‘double bag’ heavier things even when I said ‘donch need’…I think they must have encountered just too many requests.

[starlight1968sg]

The plastic bags do have a purpose


How did we handle trash/waste in the past?