To think 5p for each carrier bag is a rip off

[AuntiePickleBottom]

i just seen notices from the 1st October every shop in Wales has to charge a minimum of 5p per carrier bag, even the paper ones.

Now I guess that I could take my own but I don't think it is very hygienic

[SoupDragon]

How is it unhygienic?

[RevoltingPeasant]

..... why unhygienic? I take my own carrier bags every time I go shopping...

[BoozeDilemma]

Not hygienic? Just use the bags from your last supermarket shop. Most stuff is in packets anyway! Plastic bags take hundreds of years to degrade in the ground, please don't add to that waste.

[belledechocchipcookie]

Just take your own or buy a jute bag, they are a lot easier to carry. It's not unhygenic to recycle.

[Illegitimate]

If i were supreme overlord plastic carrier bags would be banned full stop!

[BatsUpMeNightie]

Oh for fuck's sake - just when you thought you'd seen it all from the HygieneHysterics here comes one with something so far out that I'm -

Are you planning on using the bags for collecting manure then slinging unwrapped chicken into them?

[SnakeOnCrack]

Well that's the idea, they don't want you to use plastic bags (or paper in this case I guess), it's to encourage you to take your own. This is standard in loads of countries. The amount of plastic bags we use is criminal (and I'm a culprit for this too).

I'll ignore the unhygenic bit as it's a bit odd!

[BeyondLimitsOfTheLivingDead]

Mcdonalds are in on it too! That shocked me a little, surely the point is the plastic bags being bad for the environment...

[Shinyshoes1]

I always take my own, you can get those very tiny ones that fit in the palm of your hand, they wrap up all nice and diddy and fit in your handbag.

I never use carrier bags and have about 20 shopping bags in the boot of my car

[squeakytoy]

Not hygienic? Why? Have you used it for picking up dog poo previously? Or do you unpack all your raw chicken from the wrapping before taking it home?

[catsareevil]

Baffled by the hygiene comment

[MissTapestry]

Buy an old lady shopping trolley. DM swears by hers, and if you were properly paranoid you could dettol it in between shops!

[Mrsfluff]

I don't think that supermarkets do it for green reasons, but more for profit. Before they paid for the bags and got nothing for them from the customer. Now they save the costs of buying them and profit from 'selling' them to you for 5p each. Or helpfully you can have their unwanted boxes, further saving them money!

[TeddyBare]

YABU. It's supposed to be expensive to encourage people to remember to take bags with them. I think it's a great idea.
I don't understand why you think it's unhygienic. Your food does not need to be sterile! If your food is wrapped before you buy it then it wont make a difference. If you have uncovered food then you should be washing it before eating regardless of the type of bag you used to carry it home in. If you're really worried then get cotton bags which you can hot wash occasionally, or have one bag for food and one for non-food.

[Tenebrist]

Isn't the minimum charge much higher in Ireland - 15 cents or more. Where I live in Germany the charge is often around 30 cents. And it's good that way - it really means people get into the habit of shopping either with cloth bags or recycling their existing plastic bags. Unhygenic! - good grief - what on earth DO you put in your bags that make re-use unhygenic?

For the record, we use two of those ginormous IKEA blue bags for carrying food shopping and they've lasted through years of heavy shopping once a week.

[areyoutheregoditsmemargaret]

This from a poster called AuntiePickleBottom

[RedHotPokers]

What drives me mad is I use carrier bags as bin bags in my bathroom bin. I generally use the bags for life for food shopping, but tend to get 3 or 4 normal carrier bags a week from impromptu shop visits, and all of them get used in the bin.

So all that will happen is I will have to BUY plastic bin bags instead. Where is the great environmental saving there????

[bibbitybobbityhat]

Heh heh! Nice to see Wales if finally catching up with most of the rest of the country regarding carrier bags. Take it you don't shop in Lidl or M&S then op?

[SuePurblybilt]

Top marks for short-sighted and selfish reasons not to use re-usable bags. I don't think I've heard one to top it yet .

All together Take your canvas bags, take your canvas baaaaaags, take your canvas bags to the supermarket.....

[cory]

They've been charging for bags in Sweden for the last 15 years at least. No rise in hygiene related epidemics.

[keepingupwiththejoneses]

Hygiene for shopping bags, that's a good one. I have 3 big canvas bags from various shops, one is actually what my new HP printer came in and a thermal freezer bag from iceland. works a treat and they don't split

[AuntiePickleBottom]

Maybe just have one bag specifically for raw meats, other items don't other me it just the thought of raw meats being in the same bags that cooked meats.

I very rare I get meats from the supermarket as it cheaper to get it from the butchers who cling film the meat

[Andrewofgg]

Yet another reason to be glad I don't live in Wales . . .

[ll31]

22 cents in ireland.. - hygiene an issue - really??? Are you joking?