Australia's Largest Supermarkets Ban The Plastic Bag

Two of Australia’s biggest supermarket chains have announced a phase out of single-use plastic bags.

Woolworths first announced that their stores across Australia would shortly begin a process of phasing out the use of plastic bags by July 2018 and were followed closely by competitor Coles who also announced a similar timescale.

As such, this would mean that customers in Big W and BWS stores in the Woolworths portfolio would no longer be offered a disposable plastic bag for their shopping.

At Coles, chief customer officer Simon McDowell said “We’ve been working towards this announcement for some time now as part of our ongoing program to improve environmental outcomes throughout business.”

The news has been welcomed by environmentalists, particularly as it’s estimated that between Woolworths and Coles around 5 billion bags per year are handed out, so the new drive should help to reduce this number significantly.

Shoppers at Woolworths who don’t take their own shopping bags to the store with them will be offered heavier duty bags for 15 cents, which are said to be more durable in order to encourage reuse.

This plan follows similar campaigns that have been implemented across the UK over the last 6 years which have dramatically cut the number of single use carrier bags thanks to a 5p charge being introduced.

However, with customers reusing their bags over multiple trips to the supermarket there is an increased risk of contracting bacteria which can cause food poisoning, particularly as around 7% of raw chicken packaging from UK supermarkets have been shown to carry Campylobacter.

A 2012 study discovered a spike in emergency room treatment for E. coli infections and a 46% increase in deaths from foodborne illnesses within the first 3 months of a similar scheme being introduced in San Francisco.

That’s why it’s important to make sure that you have separate bags for raw meat, vegetables and ready to eat food so ensure that bacteria is not carried over from outer packaging, leaked juices or soil and to ensure that bags with spillages on are disposed of.

The only way to make sure that bacteria won’t grow on the inside of your shopping bags is to use a Biomaster antibacterial bag for life. More major supermarkets are offering Biomaster protected bags to their customers as it offers powerful antibacterial protection for its usable lifetime.

An independent study carried out for Addmaster last year showed that 71% of respondents would pay more for an antibacterial bag for life from a supermarket and with the extremely low cost of adding Biomaster why shouldn’t more supermarkets start offering a Biomaster bag for life?

To find out more about the Biomaster antibacterial bag for life click HERE.