Single Use Plastic Bags On Their Way Out

Not surprising that California is the first state in the nation to enact legislation banning those landfill clogging, single use plastic bags… affectionately known as urban tumbleweeds. With the passage of AB 1998, shoppers will soon be bringing their own reusable bags to the store (grocery store, drug store, liquor stores, etc.) or have to pay for one. The bill is expected to have an easy time in the state Senate, and Govenor Arnold Schwarzenneger has gone on record promising a signature.
Already environmentalists everywhere are celebrating.
In places like Washington D.C. where a plastic bag tax has been in effect since January 2010, use dropped from 22 million to just 3 million per month after the ban took effect. With results like that, many more cities and states are likely to follow suit and enact similar bans, and in the wake of the public’s simmering anger over the lingering environmental disaster as a result of the BP oil spill, there’s never been a better time for businesses of all sizes to make good on those good-for-the-earth plans.
Enter custom tote bags, or re-useable bags. Already top sellers in the promotional products universe, these handy, eco-friendly products are poised to really take off. There are a virtually endless choice of colors and styles… so you’re bound to find something that suits your business, and your customer. Not only do reusable totes offer a highly visible, regularly seen place to display your logo and business name, they’re also super roomy, easy to carry and built to last.
Getting rid of those single use plastics in favor of tote bags helps the environment in lots of ways. It lessens the demand for oil that’s used to make the plastic bags as well as the impact on the environment of the toxic chemicals of manufacturing. It keeps discarded bags from killing sea turtles and other marine life who mistake them for food. Experts estimate that the mountains of plastic bags already in landfills will take a thousand years to decompose
When you start shopping for tote bags, consider:
quality — they’ll be around for a long time, so be sure to look for materials that last, reinforced stitching and imprinting that isn’t going to be easily smudged or prone to fading. A cheap bag won’t do your business image any good, sending exactly the wrong message.
selection — one size fits all doesn’t really suit anyone, instead look a vendor who can give you a choice of sizes, styles and colors — this makes it easier to create a look that truly suits your business.
experience — you want a supplier who isn’t new to the game, and who has representatives who can help guide you through the choices of colors and styles out there… so you end up with a bag you’re actually proud to give out.
guarantee — while life might not hold any, look for a reusable bag supplier who is willing to stand behind their work. Sometimes things happen, and if they do, you need to be working with a company that wants your business and will quickly correct any problem.
It may well be that many of us will soon be living in a place with a ban on one-time-use plastic bags — and will be needing an alternative. People will be only too happy to take any free reusable bags they are given.
Those bags can promote your business and show your commitment to the environment… or they can do the same thing for your competition.