Convenient and inexpensive to produce, the plastic bag seemed to be the best choice over the brown paper bag for both retailers and consumers. Unfortunately, plastic bag usage has a serious impact on the environment. If you have already chosen to make the switch to the reusable grocery bags, then congratulate yourself for being ecologically aware. Below are 6 reasons why you should stop using plastic bags and move to reusable bags:

1. Cause Depletion of Natural Resources 

Plastic bags contain polyethene, a synthetic substance produced from natural gas and petroleum. The production of plastic bags leads to the depletion of non-renewable natural resources. It takes a million barrels of oil to produce the amount of plastic carry bags per year and with this, you can imagine how much resources are being used to produce all the plastic bags across the world. Whereas reusable mesh produce bags are made from natural fibre which helps in reducing the burden on natural resources and can be used for multiple purposes.

2. Major Environmental Hazard 

Unlike reusable bags that are eco-friendly and bio-degradable, most polythene bags do not break down or disintegrate easily. A plastic bag takes up years to decompose on land and in water, whereas reusable bags are decomposed in very less time (some weeks).

3. Less Than 1% Of Plastic is Recycled 

This is very important to know that the vast majority of the plastic carry bags are not being recycled, as it’s cheaper to produce a new bag than recycling it. An average person uses about 400 plastic bags per year and a country alone uses approximately 100 billion new plastic bags each year. According to the latest report, only 1% of these are recycled worldwide. With this, you can imagine where all these used plastic bags go. They generally filled up in landfills or tossed aside only to blow through the air or accumulate in water bodies. 

4. Danger To Our Animal And Marine Life 

After usage, countless plastic bags end up in oceans and harm our marine life. Many marine animals and birds mistakenly ingest these bags or get entangled and choke in bags floating around. Some environmentalists also pointed out that turtles often mistake them for jellyfish and tend to swallow them. They also estimated that several marine animals die each year because of plastic litter ending up in the sea. Terrestrial animals do die from eating plastic as the plastic stays in their digestive system for a longer time by which they stop eating food and die of starvation.

5. Gets Back Into Our Food Chain 

Over a million tons of plastic carry bags are being produced and discarded each year, and only about 1% being recycled, the rest of the plastic bags lie in the landfills and oceans. This plastic is being consumed by marine animals which are unknowingly entered into our food chain.

6. Clogs Drains and Results In Flooding 

Generally, a plastic carry bag cannot be used for multiple purposes and after its disposal, it can last in the environment for centuries. In most countries, where there is no strict law against the use of plastic bags, it has caused a major problem in pollution. Plastic bags are easily carried by the wind, and get hanged in bushes, float on rivers, and clog drains. This leads to the blockage of drain water which further prevents free flow during heavy rains and results in the flooding of various cities.

Cotton Reusable Bags

Organic cotton bags come in many different colours and sizes ranging from small to large. Regardless of their size, these cotton bags are made of reusable cloth which provides a wonderful alternative to plastic bags. They also work as the best promotional item when attractively branded with the company’s logo and contact information. Printed and designed cotton bags can make great rewards for employees, who always value free tokens of appreciation, and also raises their productivity and enthusiasm for their jobs. By giving branded cotton bags to customers and clients, it will reach out to different people letting them know about your business. After this, retailers have realized that selling printed cotton carrier bags is good for business and for the environment.

Cotton bags printed with swirls, floral or other interesting and brightly coloured designs are also often considered as stylish to carry products or items. Many people, whether they are shoppers or business people, buy eye-catching brightly printed cotton bags when they go out for shopping or on a holiday.

An important feature to look for when considering the purchase of a printed cotton bag is the handle and its strength. To address this concern many manufacturers are now producing bags with a variety of handle styles and appearances. For buying vegetables, you can use mesh vegetable bags which also come with strong handles on the top of the bag to distribute weight evenly.