We all know the importance of using a canvas tote or re-usable bags to try and eliminate plastic waste, but you can go one step further at the grocery store. Has it crossed your mind that there might be a better way to bag your apples or potatoes, rather than putting them in plastic produce bags? You know the bags you rip off the roll and can’t figure out which side is supposed to open? <grin> It has crossed my mind on more than one occasion that there must be a better solution.

Today I received a great solution called Eco-Bags®. This company sells perfect little sacks for bagging your produce or grains. They are very light-weight and come in natural or organic cotton…most important, they are machine washable. These can be used in place of plastic produce bags. 

Amazing that Eco-Bags® was so ahead of their time when they opened for business in 1989. They were very forward thinking as the company’s goal was to produce a product so that “reusable becomes a way of life.” Also, they first launched using natural cotton, then evolved to certified organic cotton, and have now progressed to reclaimed cotton (recycled scraps).

Just to give you an idea of what colossal waste plastic bags produce for our planet -  here are the savings from San Francisco that has banned plastic bags. They estimate that 180 million bags were used per year by shoppers. The owner of Eco-Bags® projects that 90 billion plastic bags are distributed per year in the US and that paper bags are also a huge waste in the amount of energy it takes to produce them. Reusing items is probably the most profound message from Environmentalists. There seems to be no easier place to start than with plastic bags and there is an educational component with taking one of these shopping with you.  You can bet people will stop and ask questions and an Eco conversation will be born! These bags are priced great too…check here for produce bag prices. 

Picture source: Eco-Bags® site