This July, 2011, Pasig Hypermart stated using brown paper bag and used boxes to pack all grocery items of their buyers and from then on it won't be during Wednesday only but EVERYDAY. At first, I was skeptical with the idea. How about the meat and frozen foods? Is that paper bag can really hold the weight of my whole grocery? Its not comfortable for people like me who doesn't have car.
Over weeks and now months, people here that shop at SM Pasig, including me, finally get used on the brown paper bag. Yes, it is still not comfortable specially if one bought too many items that includes bottles and cans and like me, I am just commuting via jeepney or fx. But on the larger picture and the very reason why people seems to cooperate and ignore the inconvenience of this paper bag initiative is that- we are doing our small part in protecting the nature. Yes, loving nature and being concern about the future generation as well. Sweet idea!!
This initiative of SM includes all their concessionaires so even the kakanin that I loved are all now packed on a paper plate rather than the regular styrofoam. And there were even stalls that doesn't give plastic straws to their drinks as well- the cup covering can be open so plastic straws are not much needed.
Thinking of this whole program, I guess its more inconvenient on the side of the SM staff. I could just imagine that every time, the folks have to sort and store the used boxes so it could be used. The cashiers have to place the items like a puzzle for it to fit on the bag. And I believe this brown paper bag are expensive that the green plastic bag that we are accustomed to.
The reason why I am starting to like this campaign is that I am partaking to a global initiative of saving and protecting the nature. One less plastic bag during grocery time and I am reducing the plastic bag that should be on the dump site. Although the paper bag is going to be a trash as well (or could be recycled), it won't take forever to decompose unlike the plastic bag. The paper bag won't be hanging around for eternity. Its a sweet idea that when I died, my trash won't pester other people life unlike the plastic bags that clogged our drainage systems and seems to be floating endlessly over rivers and swamps during floods.
As I strolled over other SM Supermarkets and like businesses such as Puregold, the initiative is not yet applied. It might be difficult to kick start the project over places that has tremendous number of shoppers. Even though, the petty inconveniences cause by projects like this will have a long time positive effect for everyone. It might looked small and insignificant,nothing extravagant- but it will count. And eventually, we could have a less polluted Earth in the near present or future.
Lady Nyx's other suggestions:
1. Choose a smaller cloth bag that can be squeeze on our everyday office bag. So that every time we feel like we need to pick up something on the grocery, we have a handy re usable bag on our end. One less plastic bag.
2. When the cloth bag is dirty, it should be dumped on the laundry bin so it could be washed and re use.
3. Paper bags can be recycled. If we don't have time and patience on segregating, just fold it properly before throwing on the trash bin. On our apartment, we still used the paper bag as a good-for-one-day garbage bin and then hand it to the garbage truck the following day.
4. Practice not to have your items be bagged if it is only one piece and/or can be carry by hand or place on your bag. Now, if I am buying a can of soft drinks or a bottle of water or any item relatively small, I am informing the cashiers that she doesn't need to pack it up and I will just get the receipt.
*** Graphics came from Google images.
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