A BETTER BAG
When unpacking my groceries from my reusable bags, I have been getting more and more annoyed with all the little produce bags that find their way into my kitchen. I always plan to re-use them but never do - clearly some kind of mental block going on! I actually don’t bother to put half of the produce I buy into any bag - lettuces, yams, apples, just go in the cart loose, however, I obviously need a bag for green beans, plums, okra, mushrooms etc so I’m excited to try out my “produce” bags from www.reusablebags.com (LOVE!!) I saw a very virtuous and obviously Gorgeously Green girl, using them at Whole Foods the other day and I got inspired.
I’ve got two kinds: the organic cotton mesh, which looks like a shoe bag and will probably work for nuts, and beans from the bulk bins; and the net ones, which I prefer because the cashier will be able to easily see what’s inside.
Do any of you gorgeous girls use these kind of bags? They’d actually be really easy to make out of old t-shirts - ha! now I think about it, I just got my daughter a mini sewing machine, so when she’s next bored, we’ll rummage through the rag bin and get started!
July 22nd, 2008 at 12:46 pm
I’ve actually bought reuseable produce bags from various folks on etsy.com made from tulle (so you can see through them, which was the complaint I had of the ones you mention).
July 22nd, 2008 at 4:53 pm
When I purchased my SIGG bottle from reusablebags.com I also bought the reusable produce bags from them. I LOVE them. I bought 2 big and 2 small. I think the bigger ones are better and I should have bought more. I got a lot of positive feedback from the people at whole foods! I would reccomend anyone to get them, they are great!
July 22nd, 2008 at 11:27 pm
I have been using these for about a year now and LOVE them! I keep them in my glovebox with my reusable bags and love them for everything from spices, to produce, to granola.
AND, I just found another use for them. I wanted to give my teething son some all spice to suck on but it was to small. I tied it up securely in one of these small bags (I got mine from www.delight.com) and he can suck on them and get the relief right through there.
July 23rd, 2008 at 2:31 am
I’m SO glad you brought this topic up. I was actually just experiencing the same annoyance today as I was food shopping. Thanks so much for bringing this up and providing an alternative.
July 23rd, 2008 at 6:42 pm
I actually asked my Nana to crochet me a bag after I saw something similar for sale in a health food store I go to. I put most of my fruit and my veggies inside. At the register, the cashier takes each piece out, weighs it, and puts it back in. Its great and I don’t have all those plastic bags flying around!
July 25th, 2008 at 11:08 pm
I think this is great the word is spreading about alternatives to plastic and even paper.
I’ve been selling these products and I am impressed with how many are switching all over the world to help the planet.
It also helps economically too.
My grocery store has been paying customers $.05 for every reusable bag they bring to put groceries in.
I have to say though I have not seen anyone using the produce bags in the grocery store and I thought I lived in a more environmentally conscious town.
At least they are using reusable bags. All in time I guess.
July 27th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
I to have been looking for an alternative to produce bags. When I asked for an alternative at Whole Foods, the cashier suggested Debbie’s green produce bags. Using them, I have less work to transfer my produce and I am wasting less.
I will look into these cotton bags, thanks for the link, after all our flour and meals used to come in cotton bags when I was a girl.
July 28th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
I love the reusables site. I have the produce bags and grocery bags. Everyone at the supermarket i shop at love them and always ask about them. I never ever use those plastic bags for produce. Yucch.
July 31st, 2008 at 7:22 pm
ok I just moved to a small town, that doesnt recycle, and snickers at me and my reuseable green bags, farmers market doesnt exist and have to hunt the big supperstore for organic anything. we have only lived here a month and im going out of my mind.
August 24th, 2008 at 11:44 pm
I walk to the grocery store down the street and take my large canvas bag to carry my things home. I go nearly every day so I am just getting the things I need for a day or two. I find that I have zero waste this way. I don’t have the cotton produce bags but i just put most produce in the bag loose. For things like beans and such I do reuse the plastic produce bags from the store. I transfer the beans, cherries or other smaller things to a frig container and then wipe out and put the plastic bag right back in my canvas bag. It’s worked really well but I like the idea of cloth or mesh bags. I’ll have to give them a try.
September 11th, 2008 at 5:45 pm
Some time ago, I saw a Gorgeously Green canvas tote on this website but can’t find it now to order it. So far, I have given away 16 of the books to girlfriends… and counting. I also plan to give a GG talk to a networking group of women (just for the sheer pleasure of it) and I would like to be able to flaunt my GG tote. It has now almost become a status symbol in our little green Canadian mountain community to tote at tote
Verna 
September 14th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I have the bags you are talking about and I love them. I bought mine on www.delight.com and have used them a lot since then.
Something else that saves em a lot in the produce dept is the CSA I support in the summer. I pay one fee in the winter and have fresh produce each week with no bags (we reuse the boxes each week)!
I hoep this helps!
September 20th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
So I’m new to the Green world, and I’m starting small. I would like to get some reusable bags to take to the grocery, but have a quandry. I can’t afford the fancy expensive bags made of earth-friendly materials, but the more inexpensive ones are made of the non-woven polypropylene. What’s the better choice? A few of the more expensive ones, or completely replacing my use of grocery store bags with the cheaper NWP bags? Thanks!
September 28th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
Just a comment, beware that what you are using does not register on the weight scale or you will pay more. I tote my groceries in 2 plastic bins (live 30m from store so walking not an option), our local stores sell them for a couple of $. My meats go in a fabric bag that I can wash. But now you have me thinking about the plastic fruit/vege bags, I just put a whole bunch in my recycle bin - but maybe I will reuse them.
My biggest challenge at the moment is that I ‘have’ to use plastic bags to put my baby’s dirty diapers in. I use Seventh Generation disposables when not using cloth. I dont use a diaper genie as I think those are a waste of plastic doing their ‘individual wrap’ thing, but what to do with dirty diapers, let them loose in the garbage can? - any suggestions?