We are working on a plan to encourage shoppers and businesses in Northampton town centre to ditch plastic bags and choose more sustainable alternatives. The 'Plastic Not So Fantastic' campaign highlights the problems surrounding plastic bag usage and the effects of continuing our wasteful habits on the environment.
The 'Plastic Not So Fantastic' campaign has three core aims
- To encourage retailers to reduce the number of free carrier bags they give out to customers.
- To encourage shoppers to reuse carriers bags and always take their own to fill at the checkout.
- To see more done by large retailers to help customers recycle their carrier bags in store.
We are currently producing a fantastic cotton carrier bag which we hope will take Northampton by storm. The Northampton Bag has been specially designed to represent the local nature of the campaign. Special 'Plastic Not So Fantastic' window stickers are also in production.
It is hoped that all Northampton town centre shops that make the move away from plastic carriers to environmentally-responsible alternatives will display the sticker in support of the campaign.
Be a Smarter Shopper!
We recommend purchasing a couple of good solid reusable bags that will last a very long time and can stand up to the rigours of a heavy shopping trip. There is a large range of bags available in a variety of materials and styles, from ones that fold down small enough to fit in your pocket or handbag to large robust ones that fit inside a shopping trolley.
These types of reusable bags are widely available and can be reasonably priced. Remember though, all bags were made to shop so have a dig around at home to find some forgotten and neglected ones first!
Plastic Carrier Bags: Did you know?
- It is estimated that the UK uses in excess of 17 billion plastic bags every year!
- On average, that is 290 bags for every person in this country.
- It takes around 2 billion barrels of oil to produce all these bags.
- If laid end-to-end, they would stretch to the moon and back at least five times.
- 80% of shoppers put everything into free carrier bags at the supermarket.
- The average bag is used for just 12 minutes before it is disposed of.
- The vast majority of bags are only used once.
- 100,000 tonnes of plastic bags are thrown away each year - that's the same weight as 70,000 cars!
- Plastic photodegrades rather than biodegrades. There is an important difference because when plastic breaks down in light, it creates tiny particles that do not completely disappear. These tiny pieces of plastic can be ingested by animals with fatal consequences and cause pollution.
- In the Pacific Ocean there is a mass of plastic waste held together by ocean currents that stretches from the west coast of USA to Japan. The 'Great Pacific Garbage Patch' is composed of approximately 100 million tonnes of waste plastic and is twice the size of continental North America.