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Save: energy and the environment by using less plastic bags

Gain: protect the environment, and avoid split shopping bags

Cost: anything from $0.50 each to $5 each depending on your budget

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Have you ever been to the grocery store and had the embarrassment of a shopping bag splitting on you?  It’s usually when you’re a couple of feet from your car – and you can bet it’ll be the bag with the eggs and the wine in it.

Even though the standard grocery store bags are notoriously unreliable, they’re still incredibly popular – after all, they’re generally free and on hand when you need them. According to BAYROC, Americans use an astounding 30 billion plastic and 10 billion paper bags every year.  The really scary statistics start to come in when you realize the environmental impact – the production of all those plastic and paper bags uses up 14 million trees and 12 million barrels of oil.  In a world of rapidly-depleting natural resources, surely we could do without all that waste?

You could be forgiven for thinking that you’re being more environmentally-friendly byusing paper bags – after all, they’re biodegradable right?  Unfortunately, according to the website Natural Environment, they aren’t much better – in fact, due to the lack of water, light and oxygen in landfill sites, paper bags don’t decompose any faster than plastic bags.  And did you know that paper bags take four times more energy than plastic bags to produce?

Luckily there is another option.  If you’re looking to help the environment, and want a grocery bag that won’t break after one use, why not invest in a sturdy reusable option?  There are lots of options to choose from – below are my top picks for a range of budgets:

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Around 50 cents each (approx. $6 for 12 bags): Reusable Grocery T-Sack Bag, Assorted Color 12 Pk Set (See all Reusable Grocery Bags)

Average Amazon Rating ««««

Made of 100% Non-Woven Polypropylene, the bags are durable and lightweight, folding up easily to be used whenever you need them.

They also come in three different colours: light green, blue and yellow.

What the reviewers on Amazon have to say:

Pros:

• “can’t beat the price for the quality of product! Beautiful colors too!”
• “Very convenient to have for all occasions.”
• “roomy and very sturdy, and very reasonably priced.”
• “These bags are fantastic — for the price, the quality is wonderful.”

Cons:

• “Because of how the bags are shaped, you can’t fit a lot of items in them”
• “I couldn’t get the bottoms to lie flat, so when I picked up the sacks, everything would cram to the middle of the bag”

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Around $1.60 each (approx. $10 for 6 bags): Reusable Grocery Tote Bag 6 Pack Combo

Average Amazon Rating ««««¶

These are made of the same durable material, but also feature a bottom insert for greater stability.

The square design gives a similar capacity to your standard paper grocery bag, but with the addition of a convenient rack hoop.  This allows you to hang the bags on the bag hooks at your local grocery store for easier packing at the checkout.

They also come in a choice of colours: Latte, Olive, Purple, Black, Hunter Green printed “Thank You” and Blue printed “A World of Thanks”

What the reviewers on Amazon have to say:

Pros:

• “They met “gift-quality” expectations”
• “hooks on the back work well for hanging the bag on the grocery store bagging hooks”
• “can be machine washed and come out quite nicely”
• “people commented positively on how nice they are”
• “have an amazing amount of space inside and fold up neatly to store in my car”

Cons:

• “down side is the flimsy cardboard insert”

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Around $5 each (approx. $10 for 2 bags): Green Bee 2pk Reusable Shopping Bags with Pouch

Average Amazon Rating ««««¶

These lightweight, washable bags are made from recyclable polyester, so they’re soft and super environmentally-friendly.

They are also stored in a handy pouch – so you really can take them anyway.  Both bags fit in the same pouch, so you’ll never be caught out making that spontaneous run to the grocery store.

What the reviewers on Amazon have to say:

Pros:

• “Not only do these bags look great, they work well too”
• “stand-up and fit well over your shoulder”
• “So good I bought three more”
• “fits easily into a purse or glove box”
• “convenient, roll up small, easy to stash in my purse”
• “very durable”
• “large size”

Cons:

• “didn’t realize it was 2 bags and only one pouch to hold them both”
• “they don’t hold up with heavy items”

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Buy these reusable bags from Aamazon:

Reusable Grocery T-Sack Bag

Reusable Grocery Tote Bag 6 Pack Combo

Green Bee 2pk Reusable Shopping Bags with Pouch