Pettits says‘ no more plastic bags’

May 1997

Pettitts supermarkets in Wexford are taking an environmental lead by discouraging shoppers from using plastic bags, and encouraging them to use more ‘green’ alternatives instead.

While plastic bags are already discourged in some European countries, they are a firm favourite of the Irish supermarket shopper, with millions of plastic bags being used each year by Pettitts customers alone. But now, in their ‘Paper Not Plastic’ drive, Pettitts aim to try persuade people to instead opt for cardboard boxes, paper bags, and the good old-fashioned shopping bag.

Environment Minister Brendan Howlin performed the launch at the Pettitts at St Aidan’s in Wexford on Saturday afternoon, where Pettitts boss Des Pettitt said he had the idea following his upset at seeing so many plastic bags stuck in trees and shrubs by the side of the road as he drove to Dublin for an early morning appointment.

Now Des and all at Pettitts want to ease customers away from the plastic option. Des pointed out that an example of just how over-the-top the usage of plastic bags is how people routinely put an item like a half stone of potatoes, which is already packed in a plastic bag, into another plastic bag all by itself.

Minister Howlin praised the Pettitts group for their initiative and wished them well with it. He said it was certainly an worthwhile idea and it would be interesting to see how shoppers adapted to oit.

As an alternative to plastic bags, Pettitts have launched new reusable canvass shopping bags, which can be bought at the stores at low cost. They are also offering paper bags to customers.