Plastic Bag Bans: Inconvenient, but Necessary
If your state hasn’t yet had a plastic bag ban, it’s a safe bet one is heading your way soon. More and more states and countries have been banning the use of plastic grocery bags. And that means more people are finding themselves needing to buy reusable grocery bags, too.
Millions of Americans see plastic bag bans as inconvenient. We’ve all gotten used to having these cheap, simple bags around. We use them to line small garbage cans, or put our empty beverage cans in them. We use plastic grocery bags for just about everything other than making sure they get recycled.
Worldwide, roughly one trillion plastic bags are used per year. And plastic bag recycling isn’t all too popular, either, with only 1 percent of plastic bags getting recycled. Most plastic grocery bags get reused, but often end up in landfills or worse … they end up in the ocean.
Now here’s the rub. Each time a state or country puts a plastic bag ban into effect, some swath of the population protests, and ends up begrudgingly buying reusable grocery bags. But after using them a few times, most of those consumers find out something quite surprising ... Reusable grocery bags are all-around better than plastic grocery bags. A lot better.
Plastic Bags vs. Reusable Bags
A fight billed as plastic bags vs. reusable bags would be entirely unfair. The jobs we use each item for are similar, but also quite different. You shouldn’t load up your reusable shopping bags with garbage and throw them away anymore than you should use plastic grocery bags for moving around heavier items or storing things long term.
Most plastic grocery bags can hold approximately 17 pounds on average, though some items are awkwardly shaped and may not be suitable for plastic bags. In an effort to keep plastic bags cheap, they usually lack any sort of reinforcement. You’ll end up needing to “double bag it” much of the time.
Paper grocery bags can hold more weight than plastic grocery bags (with some estimates going as high as 40 to 50 pounds), but their lack of handles and generally cumbersome shape make them awkward to carry. You can bring one or two paper bags into the house at once, or three or four plastic bags, all because of their handles. And these bags also rip open whenever too much pressure is applied to their cheaply glued seams.
Typical store brand reusable grocery bags sold by most supermarkets have maximum capacities on par with paper bags, in the 30 to 50 pound range. But their focus on being reusable also means they’re far less likely to tear open from the bottom when items amass in the center, thanks to their tougher seams.
Reusable grocery bags are a lot more versatile than plastic bags, too. Their tougher construction makes them better suited to any number of tasks and chores around the house and in the yard. There’s simply no comparison here. Reusable bags are just better than plastic bags.
The Surprising Versatility of Reusable Shopping Bags
Reusable grocery bags—even the cheaper ones—can be used in more situations than your average plastic grocery bags. And for around-the-house practicality, accept no substitutes: it’s reusable bags or bust (sometimes, that “bust” is more literal than figurative, too!).
Reusable grocery bags come in all sorts of styles. They’re crafted from recycled plastic, or textiles (cotton, nylon, polyester, or hemp), or more advanced plastics like polypropylene. Some feature glued seams, while others have stitching, or some combination thereof.
Given their variety of styles, materials, and overall quality level, we can’t really list off every task a standard reusable shopping bag is capable of performing. But it’s usually a safe assumption that your reusable bags can double as reusable storage bags, or help with household chores like cleaning, gardening, and laundry. Especially if those bags are easily cleaned.
The reusability of these bags also means you’re saving valuable storage space at home that would otherwise be used up by countless plastic bags packed into other plastic bags. Foldable reusable grocery bags take up less space, and most of us aren’t going to stockpile them needlessly in case they're useful down the road.
The Best Reusable Grocery Bags Around: Moose Supply Reusable Bags
Moose Supply reusable bags weren’t designed for groceries, but for the rental industry. They’re commercial grade and exceptionally heavy duty, with some being capable of hauling over 1,000 pounds all at once. That’s why Moose Supply reusable bags are designed to be lifted not only by human hands, but by forklifts.
Event and party rental professionals would fill these bags with all sorts of equipment. Their high weight capacity and their puncture resistant commercial grade polypropylene construction meant you could carry just about anything in one of these bags without a problem. Tent stakes, ratchet straps, garden hoses, A/V equipment, tablecloths … there’s very little these bags can’t take on.
Moose Supply bags come in three general shapes, each of which comes in three different sizes (small, medium, and large). As a general rule, small bags make for ideal reusable grocery bags. Medium bags are super big and work well as extra large grocery shopping bags. And the large bags are better suited for hefty chores and really big jobs. You’d feel pretty ridiculous trying to bring one into a grocery store. They’re that big.
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Moose Supply HaulzAll Super Totes have a traditional reusable grocery bag shape. Round bags have a sturdy and taught cylindrical opening, making them perfect for any household task where you need to quickly fill your bag up on the fly. And rectangle bags are longer and great for all sorts of storage applications in your car, at home, or at work.
Want to learn more about Moose Supply HaulzAll and CarryAll bags? Want to try one for yourself and see why these are the best reusable grocery bags on the market today? Give our sales team a call at 1-716-832-8368 and see for yourself!