Down to Earth to Halt Use of Plastic Bags

Down to Earth has become Hawaii’s first grocery chain store to formally announce its commitment to halt the use of plastic shopping bags in favor of “compostable” bags. It will replace its single-use plastic shopping bags with 100-percent “compostable,” biodegradable bags made from GMO-free starch. The new bags will be made available to customers at Down to Earth’s five Hawaii locations within the next few months.

“We are extremely excited and pleased to be introducing these ‘compostable’ bags as an alternative to plastic bags,” said Down to Earth CEO Mark Fergusson. “These bags biodegrade naturally when they are exposed to the earth’s elements. They will break down in 90 to 180 days, depending on the composting environment and leave no harmful residues behind. They can also biodegrade in fresh and salt water.”

The Customer Rules
The biodegradable bags will cost the company significantly more than traditional plastic shopping bags. To help decide how to recover this significant cost increase, they conducted an informal customer survey.

“Fully 80 percent of the customers surveyed said they would prefer us to charge them ten cents per bag rather than see increased prices to cover the cost of the more expensive compostable bags,” explained Fergusson.

Along with charging customers ten cents for the biodegradable bags, the company is planning to increase its credit per bag from five cents to 10 cents for those who reuse their biodegradable bags or bring their own bags. And, it will offer a variety of reusable bags beyond the canvas bags they have been selling for decades and the collapsible recycled plastic bags they have offered in more recent years.

“There are several reasons why we want to get rid of the standard plastic bags as soon as possible,” explains Fergusson.

Plastic Bag Litter Desecrates the Environment, Harms Marine Life
News reports say the number of plastic bags used around the world annually has been estimated between 100 billion to 1 trillion. Only a tiny fraction of them are recycled. Most have a short lifetime with a consumer, as they are used mainly for the few minutes it takes to get from the store to home. And then they're thrown away. Many bags litter the landscape, or end up in landfills, or the oceans, where plastics make up an estimated 60 percent to 80 percent of all marine debris.

The Center for Marine Conservation based in Washington D.C. recently completed a five year study into ocean debris. Their National Marine Debris Monitoring Program recorded that plastic bags accounted for over 10 percent of the debris washed up on the U.S. coastline.

“This is a worrisome problem for Hawaii, where the effect on sea life can be catastrophic,” he adds.

According to a World Wildlife Fund report in 2005, plastic bags flying into the ocean affect nearly 200 different species of sea life that die after ingesting plastic bags which they mistake for food.
These species include whales, dolphins, seals and turtles.

The environmental effects are just as devastating. Plastics have been around for only about 150 years, so no one is sure how long they take to break down. But environmentalists, scientists and manufacturers generally agree that the process can take up to 1000 years. Over time, these bags break down into smaller, more toxic petro-polymers which eventually contaminate soils and waterways. As a consequence their microscopic particles can enter the food chain.

Paper, Bags From Recycled Material Not the Answer
“Some people say that re-usable bags made from recycled material are the gold standard, but we don’t see it as a viable solution nor do we see paper as being very helpful either.”

Shopping bags from recycled material are made mostly using plastic bottles shipped to India and China for re-processing. As a result, these bags have a huge environmental footprint that negates any benefits. The footprint takes into account additional costs associated with extra manufacturing to reconstitute the bottles into recyclable materials, related chemical waste, and round-trip shipping.

As for paper bags, Fergusson says many people instinctively assume they are better for the environment because their core ingredient is derived from wood, which is a natural and renewable product. But the wood industry is also responsible for clear-cutting old growth forests and adding to the problems of deforestation.

Replanting fast-growing pine trees may solve the recycling problem for the companies, Fergusson says, but it also creates unnatural forests with fewer old-growth hardwood trees for native animals to inhabit. In addition, paper bags are also produced using many chemical processes that pollute waterways. Besides, he says paper bags don’t work very well because they tear and are difficult to handle if you carry more than one bag.

“Therefore, the truly sustainable environmental solution is to embrace the latest in compostable technology while encouraging people to re-use their bags. In so doing we will contribute to a cleaner and safer environment.

“We owe it to ourselves and to our children, who will inherit the results of our good stewardship. As far as Down to Earth is concerned, the sooner we are able to stop using plastic bags the better,” adds Fergusson.

Down to Earth is the only all-vegetarian natural foods store in Hawaii and one of only a few in the nation. The first store opened its doors to customers in 1977 in Wailuku, Maui. With five stores on Oahu and Maui, Down to Earth is today the largest locally owned natural food store in Hawaii. For more information, visit www.DowntoEarth.org.

Back

close window