Paper Bags: The Real Cost

I was at a local grocery store and I observed customers who chose to use the self-checkout machine. I was surprised to witness customers who chose paper bags over plastic bags. My first thought were they informed shoppers who had followed the paper vs. plastic debate, or they chose paper bags for personal reasons. I read an article, which informed the reader that when we pay for our groceries we are paying twice for the paper bag. I didn’t get it at first until I did some research and read other articles that also informed the reader that the prices of paper bags are included in the price of our food in some cases. So, when you fail to bring a recyclable bag with you to shop you may be asked to pay for the paper bag or recyclable bag that the store offers, which may cause you to actually pay twice for the bag(s). However, if it’s true that we are paying twice than it would be nice if the price of food would drop.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/myoregon/2011/02/we_pay_twice_if_plastic_bags_a.html