Print this PostI just made a quick trip to the supermarket to buy a few items: bread, milk, potato chips, lunch meat, and chocolate bars. When I got to the checkout counter and paid the cashier, she returned my change and handed me what I like to call my “grocery bag ration” for the day, which for today’s purchase consisted of just one bag.
Now, I’m not trying to complain, but getting everything into one measly little plastic bag is a little tricky when you have a mixture of fragile and non-fragile items to carry home. For instance, in today’s purchase I had items that could be squashed (bread and chips) and items that could do the squashing (large, heavy boxes of milk). Why couldn’t the cashier have given me just one more bag? After all, she surely saw that with just one bag I was struggling to get all my items “jammed” inside without smashing anything.
This is a trend that I see in virtually every supermarket that I visit in Spain. In fact, no matter what store I go to, it’s always the cashier who keeps the bags stashed away behind the counter –almost like a hidden treasure– only to be handed out sparingly. In the USA, when you bag your own groceries at a store you usually have full access to all the plastic bags you want… here in Spain, however, the bags are rationed and you have to “sweet talk” the cashier to get more than your daily ”allotment.”
I understand that giving people less bags can cut down on costs for the store and that less plastic can save resources and help the environment. Yet still, I sometimes think that they go a little “too far” here with the whole “bag rationing” thing. Of course, that’s just my opinion. Any of you other expats (or Spaniards) want to jump in on this idea? Leave a comment below.
Hasta luego,
–Chris
http://abroadinspain.com
Hi Chris,
Personally I think plastic bags should NOT be given out to customers in stores anywhere in the world. I could go on and on about how destructive plastic bags are for the environment but I think you should check out this website to understand just how serious their impacts are:
http://www.reusablebags.com/facts.php
Cotton or mesh shopping bags are an excellent alternative to single use plastic shopping bags and are WAY more DURABLE and effective as shopping bags. All you have to do is get in the habit of bringing a few with you when you shop! I don´t know about you but every time I carry groceries in a plastic bag I´m always worried it´s going to break (even if it´s double bagged) and with reusable bags you never have this problem. Many grocery stores in the US now sell cotton or mesh bags for a few dollars so that people will begin using them instead of plastic which is great but the situation has been slow to improve.
When I studied abroad in Valencia last spring I didn´t notice any bag rationing going on but I think the bag rationing you are seeing is a sign of the growing consciousness surrounding plastic bags.
Check out these websites for info about the US and China in regards to plastic bags:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/05/plastic-bags-ban-and-tax.php?daylife=1&dcitc=daylife-article
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2009-05/26/content_7944466.htm
So I’m guessing Spaniards haven’t gotten onto the reusable shopping bag trend yet?
I use the re usable bags and I swear by them.
I do miss having the plastic bags to use in my garbage when I’m done with them but apparently it’s better for the environment.
I like your attitude and agree they shoudl be banned!
@Dana – Thanks for the links, they do open your eyes… I suppose you’re right, the “rationing” of bags is probably due to an increased consciousness.
@bbrian017 – I use the plastic bags in my garbage all the time as well… that’s what I like most about them, and by using them in this way I feel like I’m at least not “directly discarding” them without at least a little bit of recycling going on.
@Matt – You’re right… the whole “reusable bag” trend hasn’t really caught on much here.
@Chris I use the the re usable bags all the time. In Canada it’s a must and you see people rarely using the plastic again.
@matt I use them also for my lunch it works pretty good! I’m starting to run out hahah!
@bbrian017 – Using them for your lunch is another good idea… I’ve done that as well.
Reusable bags are €1 each at Carrefour (£1 at Morrisons in Gib). They’ve been slow to catch on, but they’ve been around for a few years here in Spain. It’s only now that they’ve made plastic bag illegal (about time really) that people have been forced to change.
The reusable webbing and ripstop bags kick ass on any plastic sack. They hold their shape, they’re easier to pack, they hold more, they are easier to carry, and they fit in the trunk of the car better without tipping over and squashing everything. They are almost indestructible. You can rinse them out and they last forever.
@Brad – You do have a good point there… the reusable bags last a long time and are quite durable. I have to admit it.
Reusing plastic bags for your garbage is ok, but I find that gives people the excuse to constantly forget their cotton bags and end up using more plastic than is necessary….if you really want to be serious about helping the environment, skip plastic altogether and for your garbage use biodegradeable bags made from potato. They look and feel just like plastic, you can buy them at good eco stores.