A Fairyland of Packaging Technologies

I thought it might be useful to mention the state of one of the environmentalists' mindless crusades over in the UK.
So far:

• Sainburys - no problem, give you a bag
• Tescos - same
• Waitrose - same
• M&S - same

There are a few other supermarkets to try, but they are a bit of a distance away.

So far I have found two places which refuse to give bags:

• B&Q - a hardware shop, is charging 5p per bag. I had accumulated quite a few things around the store. but left with only what I could carry (3 items)
• M&S motorway stops - these are a relatively new invention, and are basically convenience food places in petrol stations and motorway stops. They charge for bags (not sure how much) but to get around this they give you little bags

The B&Q side is bizarre since hardware stores are one place where you often end up with lots of little bits and pieces. I will not be shopping there again, it is just too much hassle.

The M&S motorway case is even worse. Here you have a store which specialises in convenience food. Everything is packaged in plastic. It is a fairyland of packaging technologies. I dont think there is one item in the store which is not in plastic packaging. Even the fruit. Yet they charge for plastic carrier bags! This is why I describe the plastic bag fetish as mindless. The store which is most obsessed with stuffing everything in plastic containers is the one that charges for plastic bags! But worse, they put everything in little bags so you end up with 3 bags instead of 1! Almost no one leaves there with a carrier bag, but lots of little ones instead. Mindless zombies the lot of them.

Most stores offer 'eco-bags' for sale in prominent positions. Most times they ask if you want a bag rather than just giving you one, unless it is obvious that you need one. Quite a lot of people turn up with these bags or some other arrangement - I would guess a third, but it is early days. I am happy enough with this arrangement and I think most people are. It is a bit obsessive, given that plastic bags are actually of no importance to the planet, but it doesn't really matter. It will blow over.

More important is the pollution from the start-stop nature of UK traffic, but more on that another time.

Comments

[Richard]

Bunnings here give you no bag, just leave the stuff on the counter for you to go get a ratty beat up half of a cardboard box to put things in. Whats the point in the little baskets in the store since if you cant carry it in the store, you cant really carry it around to find a stupid box and stuff.

The result is I shop more at mitre 10 who give you a bag.

[The Optimist]

Yes I used to shop at Bunnings quite a bit, but after they got rid of bags I only went once more. Bought my goods (lots of little bits) and they refused me a bag. I asked for a refund whereupon they tried to give me a huge eco-bag. Apparently they simply *don't have* normal carrier bags any more! I still wanted a refund but it involved a lot of messing around. Unfortunately I was out of time and left without the goods.

I have never been back. I make a point of telling Mitre 10 why I shop there, and it is because they care more about their customers that the idiotic hand-wringing environmentalists. Unfortunately Mitre 10 is a bit further away, but at least I can get the stuff home.

More rantings on this subject:

http://savethehumans.typepad.com/weblog/2008/10/why-plastic-bags-are-great.html

[devin]

who wrote this article?

[The Optimist]

Me, The Optimist