You've heard this question time and again at the grocery store: Paper or plastic? Well, the correct answer is: neither. Instead, tote your own grocery bag. A single plastic bag can take one thousand years to biodegrade in a landfill, emitting harmful greenhouse gasses. Many groceries sell reusable bags, others offer them free, and some give discounts on your groceries for toting your own bag. There are also companies that donate a portion of your bill to environmentally friendly organizations.
Resources
Special thanks to Enviro-Tote in Bedford, New Hampshire, for providing their large grocery tote bags to everyone in our audience. Visit Enviro-Tote at www.enviro-tote.com or at 4 Cote Lane, Bedford, NH 03110-5805 (Phone: 603-647-7171, Fax: 603-647-0116).
I take those plastic shopping bags in turn them into yarn. Carol Duvall shows how to do this on her website. I then crochet my plastic yarn into a very sturdy tote bag. I get a lot of compliments on them, plus now I have lots of tote bags to carry my groceries and library books in.
My mother and I took this to heart and have decided to start our own tote business. You can find it at www.gogreentotes.com! We're having such a blast with it while helping the environment!