101 uses for a ‘plastic’ bag

No, not the flimsy plastic bags that M&S are talking about charging their food court customers 5p for in the UK. These ‘plastic’ bags are those sold by French supermarkets; tough, durable, waterproof and costing about a euro. The fabric handles don’t break and you can get much more in them.

The French government decided they wanted to decrease the use of plastic bags. The main supermarket chains agreed, gave notice of their intentions and reusable bags became an accepted part of shopping in France. Indeed, it’s not unusual in our part of northern France to see people (I’ve done it myself) shopping with their bag, unloading at the till and reloading as their shopping comes through.

These reusable bags are recycleable, biodegradable and eco-friendly, being made, apparently, from cornstarch and a biodegradable polymer. Time to degrade in the ground is around two months against more than 400 years for an ordinary plastic bag. A big plus for the environment!

Here are the first seven in my list of ’101 uses for a ‘plastic’ bag’:

1. for carrying home your shopping, from supermarket or market (just don’t forget to put the empty bag back in the car afterwards!);
2. for carrying firewood into the house, much less messy than carrying it in by the armload or even in a trug;
3. for putting your laundry in to take to the laverie, or even as a substitute laundry basket;
4. for loading up with rubble (which you will always have if you are doing any renovation work) easy to stack in the car or trailer and to empty at the déchetterie;
5. for holding all the books you do not yet have shelf space for (we’ve currently got seven bags pending);
6. for trundling to and fro from the UK with, much easier to stack and take up less room than suitcases or boxes (lost count of the number of cars on the M1 we’ve passed loaded up this way);
7. as a useful, lightweight and cheap garden trug.

So, there you are. My first seven ideas for reusing ‘plastic’ bags. I’ve got more but if you have any great ideas do feel free to add them in the comments. Look forward to hearing from you.