Several weeks ago, I noticed that SM was still going strong in its BYOB (Bring Your Own Bag) campaign, a campaign aimed to entice shoppers to use reusable shopping bags instead of the less "environment-friendly" plastic bags of yesterday. I don't really know if the campaign is already gaining success but I still do see a great majority of shoppers touting "yellow" bags instead of "green" non-woven bags.
As for me, I love the idea of the eco-friendly reusable bag. I really do. But so far, my parents haven't bought any shopping bags of that sort yet and I am in no way inclined to pursuade them to do that. Maybe, I'm also resistant to change but it can also be that the reasons to buy those green bags are not compelling enough.
First, they say that I can help the environment by buying reusable bags. The rationale behind this is, since I'm using the same bag over and over again, the less number of plastic bags are used over time, and the less trash will accumulate in our landfills in the form of discarded plastic bags.
But I don't think this reason is good enough because I now see the phrase "Biodegradable- 100% degradable environment friendly bag" written on every SM plastic bag. I am assured then that these items won't lead to more trash and more overflowing landfills because these would simply rot in the soil (albeit after a lengthy period of time). In contrast, the non-woven polypropylene green bags touted as "eco-friendly" are more catastrophic to the environment; they are slow to breakdown and are likely to leave toxic residues in the ground. The question then is: Is the green bag really a whole lot better than the yellow plastic bag we have grown accustomed to?
My second point is that SM apparently doesn't have any incentive for shoppers using their green bags. Even if I'm using a green bag, I'm not entitled to any discount whatsoever for doing my part to save Planet Earth. This, to me, is unfair, since the costs of producing those yellow plastic bags have already been factored into the retail prices of the goods I'm buying. By using green bags, I'm saving SM some money in the form of reduced demand in yellow plastic bags and, in extension, the reduced production of these items. At the least, SM should recognize my contribution in lowering their costs by giving me even a Php5.00 discount every time I shop with a green bag.
So there. I'm not saying I won't be using green bags in the future. It's just that as long as my reasons for not using them remain valid, I will still be sticking around with yellow plastic bags. Besides, we've got garbage and those yellow bags do their jobs well as nifty trash bags.
And hopefully, this is the last time I'll ever write an article with the word "bag" written a million times.
As for me, I love the idea of the eco-friendly reusable bag. I really do. But so far, my parents haven't bought any shopping bags of that sort yet and I am in no way inclined to pursuade them to do that. Maybe, I'm also resistant to change but it can also be that the reasons to buy those green bags are not compelling enough.
First, they say that I can help the environment by buying reusable bags. The rationale behind this is, since I'm using the same bag over and over again, the less number of plastic bags are used over time, and the less trash will accumulate in our landfills in the form of discarded plastic bags.
But I don't think this reason is good enough because I now see the phrase "Biodegradable- 100% degradable environment friendly bag" written on every SM plastic bag. I am assured then that these items won't lead to more trash and more overflowing landfills because these would simply rot in the soil (albeit after a lengthy period of time). In contrast, the non-woven polypropylene green bags touted as "eco-friendly" are more catastrophic to the environment; they are slow to breakdown and are likely to leave toxic residues in the ground. The question then is: Is the green bag really a whole lot better than the yellow plastic bag we have grown accustomed to?
My second point is that SM apparently doesn't have any incentive for shoppers using their green bags. Even if I'm using a green bag, I'm not entitled to any discount whatsoever for doing my part to save Planet Earth. This, to me, is unfair, since the costs of producing those yellow plastic bags have already been factored into the retail prices of the goods I'm buying. By using green bags, I'm saving SM some money in the form of reduced demand in yellow plastic bags and, in extension, the reduced production of these items. At the least, SM should recognize my contribution in lowering their costs by giving me even a Php5.00 discount every time I shop with a green bag.
So there. I'm not saying I won't be using green bags in the future. It's just that as long as my reasons for not using them remain valid, I will still be sticking around with yellow plastic bags. Besides, we've got garbage and those yellow bags do their jobs well as nifty trash bags.
And hopefully, this is the last time I'll ever write an article with the word "bag" written a million times.
1 comment:
I visited SM the other week and I found out that they were giving out SM advantage points for shoppers who used their "green" shopping bags. I guess this incentive was meant to stand in for the "discount" idea I had proposed in my post which, come to think of it, can lead to potentially dishonest transactions among cashiers.
Post a Comment