There are more progressive states & towns than the one I live in like these who have banned or taxed plastic bags. Here on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina I am astonished by how few people use re-useable shopping bags. I nearly lost my breakfast watching a friend unload her groceries, wad up her plastic bags, and stuff them into the trash can.
It can take up to 200-1,000 years for a single plastic bag to decompose in the landfill. That means that the plastic bag tossed today might not fully break down by the time your great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great child is born. That’s a whole lot of suffocating of the planet!
Luckily we can own & utilize reusable, cloth shopping bags. The trick is remembering them before you get into the store because few things are more frustrating than arriving at the check-out line at the grocery store and realizing you’ve forgotten your cloth bags….again! At best they are still in the car. Worst yet, they’re still at home. Here is how I trained myself to remember my cloth bags every time.
1. When you empty your groceries from your cloth bags at home in the kitchen, hang the empty cloth bags on the front door knob immediately.
2. The next time you leave your home, take the cloth bags from the front door knob, carry them to your car, and toss them in the trunk or cargo space. Let them live there.
3. If you keep a shopping list, write at the top “CLOTH BAGS.” Often the sight of this will trigger you before you start shopping to make sure you have brought your cloth bags in with you to the store.
4. This is THE MOST important step: if you do your shopping, get into the check-out line, and suddenly realize you have forgotten your bags, tell the cashier you need to set aside your buggy and that you’ll be right back. Go get your bags!!! I promise you, you will need to do this only once or twice. It is a huge hassle and something you will not want to repeat.
If instead you let it slide and opt for paper or plastic and/or you buy new reusable bags (to add to your collection of 20+ already) you are reinforcing a habit you’d rather change. Stop. Park the buggy. Go fetch your cloth bags. I promise you this will work.
This is the key to establishing a new cloth bag habit. It has worked so well for me that it now feels odd to enter a grocery store with empty hands. If I don’t have my bags, I generally notice it before I enter the door.
Remember, cloth bags are not only for groceries. Save a special, clean fold-up fabric bag or two to use when you are shopping for clothes, office supplies, or other household items. Give all your cloth bags an occasional wash to keep things fresh too! This is why actual cloth bags instead of thicker plasticized bags are preferable. It’s nice to keep them clean and one day they will wear out. Cloth will decompose a lot better than plasticized bags.
I’d love to hear below in the comment section other tricks you’ve used to remember your reusable shopping bags.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Yes, it just needs to be formed into a habit. I go shopping to the farmers market and grocery store on foot, since we live in a city. I leave the cloth bags in the trolley at all times. For the grocery shopping, the bags are in a basket at the front door, and there’s a wicker shopping basket as well. I think you’re right, the key is to feel strange going into a store (or out the door if you’re going on foot) with empty hands.
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I’m happy to know that my habits are the ones you’ve discovered for yourself too Laura!! Thanks for commenting!
Nice tips to remember cloth bags and from all the tips I follow the hanging bag on the front door and trust me it works for me! It can save you money and save the environment by pollution. Thanks for the interesting article!