Supermarket Rant…well not really a rant.😁

[kymom99]

Plastic bag recycling is not terribly effective at recycling them. They need to be banned, along with single use plastic bottles.

https://abc7ny.com/target-walmart-recycling-recycle-plastic-bags-abc-news-recyclable/13290905/

ABC News put dozens of trackers in plastic bags for recycling. Many were trashed.​

Less than 10% of plastic waste is recycled worldwide, data shows.

We aren’t supposed to put plastic grocery bags in our recycling bins for pickup by our trash collectors.

 

[Christine]

Some areas of VA do. Fairfax and Loudoun counties charge 5 cents for plastic bags.

Yeah, I guess I forgot about them. That's been relatively recent though, hasn't it? I was literally just thinking across all the many counties in Virginia.

 

[tony67]

Plastic bag recycling is not terribly effective at recycling them. They need to be banned, along with single use plastic bottles.

https://abc7ny.com/target-walmart-recycling-recycle-plastic-bags-abc-news-recyclable/13290905/

ABC News put dozens of trackers in plastic bags for recycling. Many were trashed.​

Less than 10% of plastic waste is recycled worldwide, data shows.

This is somewhat common for most recycling unfortunately - I always compare it to the rubber drives during WWII - it was a feel good thing for the most part
.
Part of the problem was other countries stopped taking the stuff from us.

Its not unusual for the recycling and the regular trash to end up going to the exact same place.
Its not unusual to see the garbage truck also pick up the recycling.
It used to only be when storms were coming etc.. lately its every few months for no particular reason I am aware of.

Still they make us sort everything - and they wont take many things they used to - like plastic.
We have to take that ourselves to places that will take it - so maybe its being processed separately - IDK.

They also send out inspectors occasionally and can fine us - its not happened to me yet - but when it does I have the videos of them picking up both bins and putting it in the same truck on a nice day in summer.

We can no longer throw out old clothing and cloth. If it was worth donating we would and always have.
Who wants old undergarments with holes in it, and now we have to look for places to take it and they dont want it either.

 

[Praying Colonel]

Most local places around us give plastic bags for free. Trader Joes does paper bags (I think they also have plastic but you have to ask for them).

Aldi doesn't give bags, but I know that going in.

We recently visited London and the local supermarket (Sainsburys) charged 30p for plastic bags.

I prefer to use my reusable bags because those plastic bags seem to multiply like Tribbles. Can't stand them.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Plastic bag recycling is not terribly effective at recycling them. They need to be banned, along with single use plastic bottles.

https://abc7ny.com/target-walmart-recycling-recycle-plastic-bags-abc-news-recyclable/13290905/

ABC News put dozens of trackers in plastic bags for recycling. Many were trashed.​

Less than 10% of plastic waste is recycled worldwide, data shows.

I take mine to a non-profit here that turns them into sleeping mats for the homeless these days. The Reuse portion of the 3 R's sometimes gets forgotten.

Although I have noticed Walmart has brought back their plastic bag collection boxes

Recycling efforts and efficiencies can depend directly on the communities themselves.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We aren’t supposed to put plastic grocery bags in our recycling bins for pickup by our trash collectors.

That's how it is here too. Plastic single use bags are for trash.

 

[Moliphino]

We aren’t supposed to put plastic grocery bags in our recycling bins for pickup by our trash collectors.

The article was about bags dropped off at stores in the designated plastic bag recycling bins.

 

[Imzadi]

We aren’t supposed to put plastic grocery bags in our recycling bins for pickup by our trash collectors.

You didn't read the article. Here's the short version: Target stores used to have a designated bin purposely to COLLECT everyone's used plastic bags that people would bring in and dump in their designated recycle bins, since as you said they can't be recycled at home. TARGET said they would send the plastic bags off to the proper recycling centers which DO recycle the plastic bags.

Turns out, Target lied. Our of 42 locator tags put in various plastic bags, in many Targets all across the U.S., only 2 ended up at a real recycling facility. One ended up overseas in Thailand. A few went unaccounted for, probably crushed by the dump truck. The rest all ended up in various landfills across the U.S.

Since being outed last spring, Target has stopped their (phony) recycling programs.

 

[Mle8308]

You didn't read the article. Here's the short version: Target stores used to have a designated bin purposely to COLLECT everyone's used plastic bags that people would bring in and dump in their designated recycle bins, since as you said they can't be recycled at home. TARGET said they would send the plastic bags off to the proper recycling centers which DO recycle the plastic bags.

Turns out, Target lied. Our of 42 locator tags put in various plastic bags, in many Targets all across the U.S., only 2 ended up at a real recycling facility. One ended up overseas in Thailand. A few went unaccounted for, probably crushed by the dump truck. The rest all ended up in various landfills across the U.S.

Since being outed last spring, Target has stopped their (phony) recycling programs.

Not surprised. Like @tony67 said, we have separate trash and recycling (as do most). I would say about 50% of the time the trash collectors also take the recycle bin and dump it in with the trash. A local news network did a story maybe a year or two ago about where the recyclables went after being picked up. It was the same place as the trash - caused a big stir and I believe it's now changed. China used to be a big purchaser of our recycled items, not anymore. There are some interesting and eye opening articles online about it.

 

[AppleDumpling]

I'm suspicious of all these degradable bags now made of this material. They shouldn't degrade while still USING them and for the first time.

The Targets near me (not far from you) used to have those bags, but switched over to paper, sometime earlier this year. A cashier told me that too many people were grabbing stacks of them for their own use, in excess of what was needed for their purchases (so basically stealing them), and they were running out so quickly and losing too much money. So now they have these, which I like just fine.

 

[disneychick0412]

No charge for bags here (Kentucky). I saw something when doing my last Walmart grocery pickup about using the reusable bags if you wanted. It made it sound like you had to let the person know that is bringing out your order and they would re-bag the items in your reusable bags. Is that how it works? So they would be using the plastic bags until they get to your car? That's still a waste of plastic bags. Weird.

Off topic, but why can you not pump your own gas in New Jersey? This is not the first time I've seen threads talking about this, but I'm not sure of the reason. That's foreign to me (just like pumping their own gas would probably be to someone who has always lived in NJ).

 

[Imzadi]

Its not unusual for the recycling and the regular trash to end up going to the exact same place.
Its not unusual to see the garbage truck also pick up the recycling.

I would say about 50% of the time the trash collectors also take the recycle bin and dump it in with the trash. A local news network did a story maybe a year or two ago about where the recyclables went after being picked up. It was the same place as the trash

Our building doesn't even pretend anymore that there is a separate service for recycling or trash. The trash service told them that they get sorted at the facility. Yet, we've seem how one truck picks up both types of bags at the same time and compresses and mashes all the bags in the dumpster together. No one, nor a machine is sorting stuff after that.

But, for the Target article, they supposedly were supposed to have a designated separate service which does drive the recycling directly to a recycling center.

 

[prairie_girl]

We just use a smaller fold-up cart at home to move the bags inside from the car. It's not that complicated. Plus, a lot of paper bags have handles these days. You could also just get reusable bags and not worry about it.

Or, keep polluting with your plastic bags because you're too lazy to make a second trip to the car. I guess that's an option, too.

I don't know about bags in my city. At some point, all plastic bags were banned and everyone switched to paper. Then, at some later point, Walgreens seemed to switch back to plastic somehow while everyone else is still using paper. I'm not sure why they're able to do that, but nobody's stopped them. Delivery food still comes in plastic sometimes, too, but most doesn't. We don't get charged for bags, anyway.

I hadn’t actually considered that paper bags have handles. I guess that would make it easier.

As to the plastic bags, I don’t use them, so if the lazy comment was directed at me, you are barking up the wrong tree.

 

[Moliphino]

The towns I've lived in don't do trash pickup (you can pay a private company if you want). You have to bring your own trash and recycling to the transfer station. Trash goes into orange bags that you have to pay for, recycling is free and goes directly into the appropriate receptacles (one for plastics, one for paper, one for metal and glass).

 

[HeatherC]

Here in MA it is by city, some still have plastic and some are all paper. Some charge 10 cents, some stores do not. My city is paper, but I can go one city over and get plastic.

This is why I forget my bags. Totally depends what town you are in. My closest Walmart still hands out plastic bags, but one town away they use paper.

So my rant stands.. Why can’t they just hand out paper bags for free? (I know….profit, laws, etc.). Remember this is just a light hearted rant everyone.

 

[loves to dive]

We live in small town Georgia, all the stores give away plastic bags except Aldi. You can bring your own bags if you want to but they rarely ask. My son is the manager at a small boutique grocery store and they don't have bags, they also don't have cashiers. Everything is self checkout and you use your own bags. They don't have carts either. It is geared toward college students who live in apartments in the building and other apartments around them. It is meant to just run in and get something for that night. No store brands, only name brands. We have to pay for our trash pick up from a private company so I suspect trash and recycling goes to the same place. We use old grocery bags for the small trash cans and to pick up dog poop with. I tend to carry a handful on any trip I take as well to put car trash in or to use in the hotel room, if we aren't using our RV, for the trash cans. I also use them on trips to put laundry in, bring home stuff, etc. They tend to get used until the fall apart if they aren't being used in trash cans or as poop holders.

As an aside, what really bugs me is when we take our tree limbs to the dump (we don't have leaf and limb pickup) they charge us by the pound. After you drop them off, they eventually chip them up and sell them. Used to you could drop them off for free. I've told hubby it might be worth investing in a small chipper and doing it ourselves then using the chips for mulch, that way we wouldn't have to buy mulch.

 

[tetera]

.

 

[dizneegirl]

I prefer to use my reusable bags because those plastic bags seem to multiple like Tribbles. Can't stand them.

EXACTLY! I often refuse a bag if I don't have a reusable with me, and can carry what I'm buying, because those darn plastic bags multiply like dust bunnies!

I also prefer reusable bags because I can safely carry so much more in one without worrying about them ripping or tearing as I carry them.

I have some nice, heavy, plastic reusable bags, and have made a few from chicken feed and corn sacks. VERY easy to wipe out if I've carried something that leaked, raw meat, or other.

 

[hrhdhd]

So I guess it still is NJ and Oregon.

As someone mentioned in post 25. consumers can now pump their own gas in Oregon. Stations must still offer full service and can't charge more for it.

 

[_19disnA]

It seems that various states each have a different view/approach to the issue of paper vs. plastic bags for grocery stores. At one time, bags were considered better for the environment since they are made from a renewable source (i.e. trees) where plastic bags are made from petroleum products.

Transporting something a long distance to recycle seems rather ineffective. It doesn't seem like the TOTAL picture is considered whenever there are pushes to recycle more. Facilities that recycle have to be able to sell their output at a profit, pay their workers, operate a facility/trucks/etc. None of those things are free. Clearly some things are more practical to recycle then others.