As our society becomes more environmentally conscious, environmental extremists are constantly pushing for the banning of plastic grocery bags across the world. Granted,  the plastic used in the bags cannot be recycled, but is this concept going just a bit too far?

If you’ve ever been to a store like “No Frills,” you’d know of their “no bag” policy. Essentially, you have to bring your own boxes to carry your food in, or purchase one of the store’s ridiculously-priced grocery handbags. We all want to do more to help the environment, but sometimes I think that we’re literally going over the edge. On a typical trip to the grocery store every week or two, the average person spends approximately $60 in groceries and carries approximately 20 plastic bags in their shopping cart to their vehicle. If I’m already spending $60, why should I spend another $100 to buy store handbags in place of standard grocery bags (since each handheld bag costs about $5)? Okay, so it’s only a one-time fee, since I can bring those bags back with me for future shopping trips. But it’s a hassle nonetheless, because every time I go grocery shopping, I have to remember to stash my 20 grocery handbags in the backseat of my car, taking up both time and space.

In fact, some stores have gone too far. Referring to my above example, aside from their “no bag” policy, “No Frills” also charges you 25 cents to use a shopping cart. Loblaws, a major retail grocery store chain which currently offers free plastic grocery bags, will soon be implementing a 5 cent bag charge. Now this is going to spark an argumentative debate. Based on an estimate of 20 bags per trip, it’s not the extra dollar or two you’re going to spend on the bags themselves that’s the problem – it’s the principle of the thing. We’re already paying enough money to buy our groceries, and now we have a choice to either spend more money for plastic bags, or spend EVEN MORE money for grocery handbags? And that’s not all. Who gets to decide how much is enough when it comes to the space within a grocery bag? Customers will constantly argue that the employees can fit more groceries into their bags than they’re doing, since the less bags used, the less money spent.

Fortunately, the other grocery store chains haven’t yet implemented this policy, but if they do, it seems like the only sensible solution left is to bring 10 other people with you every time you go shopping, and carry out your items by hand.