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While Whole Foods Market is spearheading the elimination of disposable plastic bags, many grocery stores are missing the mark when it comes to encouraging shoppers to bring their own containers to the bulk department. In fact, much of their bulk food items are conveniently presorted and prepackaged in plastic containers for their shoppers. On Wa$ted, we learned of a family searching for a remedy to their problem with food spoiling and going to waste. Not only was there food going to waste, but so was their packaging. I have asked about using my own container at a few grocery stores and replies ranged from "If you have your own container, we can figure something out" to "We can't do that here".
I have found that independently owned (or member owned ) food cooperatives are much better at encouraging their shoppers to bring their own containers and in some cases, giving them no other choice.
The Alberta Street COOP, where I used to shop in Portland, Oregon, not only sells permanent glass containers at their bulk food station, but also they provide biodegradable bags at 5 cents each. Last time I checked, there were no petroleum based plastic bags available for bulk food purchases.
This post was inspired by Planet Green's show, Wa$sted
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