Addiction for another
bags when we go to the supermarket, but many of us are forgetting to take bags along when we go to other types of shops or services.
It is disheartening to see just how many shoppers are still accepting thicker plastic bags in corner stores, chemists, boutiques and other specialty retailers. We all need to get into the habit of carrying our own shopping bags and there are plenty of options available that are compact and can be folded up and kept in handbags, satchels, and pockets. Demand drives supply and so the more shoppers stop using the plastic bags handed out so readily by some retailers, the more significant will be the impact on reducing the amount of plastic being used in shops. We can also think about giving constructive feedback to retailers who are still handing out plastic and ask them to think about offering alternatives. Social media has played an important role in facilitating feedback between customers and retailers, by highlighting examples of excessive plastic product packaging, particularly in major supermarkets. Increasingly, customers are calling out retailers stocking products with unnecessary plastic packaging by posting photographs and using hashtags such as #PlasticFree.
There is certainly a significant role for product and packing manufacturers and this is a conversation that should also be held. Again, it will be government, retailers and consumers that will be important in pushing for changes in the way products are packaged and transported to retailers. Alternatives must be found for much of the unnecessary plastic product packaging as well as the huge amounts of plastic used in getting products from manufacturers and suppliers to supermarkets and shops.
Perhaps the whole of our state could strive to emulate the admirable stance of Coles Bay which has a total ban on plastic bags. Yes, it would be a huge challenge and would take a little time, but Tasmanian retailers and shoppers are intelligent, adaptable and responsible. We could ban all plastic bags and send a message to the rest of Australia — we gave up our addiction to plastic bags and the rest of the country can too. Dr Louise Grimmer is a retail researcher and Lecturer in Marketing in the Tasmanian School of Business and Economics at the University of Tasmania.