We began a plastic bag reduction program at our North Corridor Co-op Food Stores.
For us and our customers, this means starting February 10th we will:
• Charge 5 cents per single-use plastic check stand bag
• Donate 3 cents to charity for every reusable bag used
• Continue to accept plastic bags to be recycled
The charity’s we selected are Boyle Youth Centre & Thorhild “Seeds to Sprouts” Daycare. The donations will be made once per year.
WHY
There have been increasing concerns regarding plastic pollution from both the Government and consumers; a major concern is the reliance on the consumption of single-use plastic bags.
• Over 110,000,000 single-use plastic bags are sold in the Co-operative Retailing System (CRS) annually
• Current research and competitor’s experience indicate that charging a nominal fee for bags can reduce the number of bags used by at least 60%
• Many of our competitors have implemented programs to reduce plastic bag consumption. Loblaw, Walmart, Save-on, London Drugs, and others have implemented a plastic bag fee
• We can show sustainability leadership in our communities by helping reduce the use of single-use plastic bags in our stores