For the LOVE of PLASTIC?

6/29/2010

This picture was taken June 6th on Bowling Ball Beach. My husband and I were there to renew our wedding vows. At first I was tempted to walk by the plastic pieces, leave it -- not have it enter our romantic moment -- but alas it was impossible for me to ignore.

As you know by now, in addition to being passionate about organic cotton, I also can get pretty worked up about plastic grocery bags and plastic water bottles. I just KNOW they will one day be the icons of our short-sighted insanity.

So, last week when the news came on the radio: Reusable Grocery Bags Contaminated with bacteria, my first thought was "I bet that study was funded by the plastic industry." So, I did a little digging... and sure enough... the study was brought to us by the American Chemistry Council. Just who and what is the American Chemistry Council? Well... in addition to their own home page, they are the ones behind the oh-so-lovely Plastics Make it Possible web site and also this gem: Stop the Bag Tax. sigh.

I decided to read the entire report. I like to know what the "science" is behind the "news". The timing of this release coupled with the impending vote on California AB 1998 is just too suspect to ignore.

What I learned:
They say that 80 of the 84 bags collected were woven polypropylene, but that seems highly unlikely. Most of those 99 cent at-the-counter "re-usable" bags are actually made of NON-woven polypropylene. I have emailed the authors to clarify. (I will report back what I hear...assuming I get a response. In the meantime, I am going to assume they meant non-woven polypropylene bags. To get such a fundamental piece of the study wrong was my first red flag.)

Don't get my husband started on how much he HATES this "eco" alternative (maybe I can get him to do a guest post for me on the topic). My problem is that non-woven polypropylene is still made from plastic.

People know cloth is washable. Is non-woven polypropylene washable? It doesn't feel like fabric and I completely agree with the study that BIG washing instructions should go in each of these sorts of bags. Non-woven polypropylene, although not single-use, still is made with fossil fuels and they don't last all that long. My friend Jane regularly washes hers and she found they last less than 6 months. Improvement, I guess... but my washed fabric bags have lasted YEARS and show no sign of needing replacement. Now THAT is a solution!

What the press left out was that "Attempts to isolate Salmonella and Listeria bacteria from the bags were not successful in this study, but this may only represent the limited number of samples that were collected."

Get this, the study actually tainted non-woven polypropylene bags with meat juice and put them in a trunk in the mid afternoon for 2 hours to see if bacteria grew. BIG surprise...HELLO! It did! My take away - don't eat meat.... and if you do, don't be stupid about it. Would you leave meat in your trunk for 2 hours? If meat juice spills, clean it up!

The other tidbit left out of the "news" story was that the report showed that "Hand or machine washing was found to reduce the bacteria in bags by >99.9%." Funny that the "news" was about fear and contamination rather than oh say, "Washing your reusable bags can keep you and your planet healthy" - oh, you're right, that probably won't sell as many papers. Fear sure is sexy. I have to admit that I resent the fact that this important statistic from the report which is featured both in the summary and the conclusion of the full report was missing entirely from the University of Arizona's own press release. Hummm... I am not someone who leans towards conspiracy theories but really?!

15 Comments

Lainie link

6/30/2010 02:24:57 am

A great post, Harmony. All of your points are excellent. Besides, as my scientist dad used to say, we're supposed to live in a normally unhygienic environment. In other words, some bacteria in the world keeps us healthy and resistant - we don't want everything sterile and laden with unnecessary antibiotics. I'm pretty confident that my cloth grocery bags aren't the biggest threat to my health.
Thanks for a great and thoughtful post.
Lainie

MissesStitches link

6/30/2010 03:08:38 am

How do you spell the sound of gnashing teeth?? Thanks for bringing this to our attention. I agree with Lainie, that cloth grocery bags are not the biggest health threat.

Alina link

7/1/2010 01:29:18 am

Oh, Thank you writing this! I could not agree more with your points but without doing the research I did not have all the facts. Thanks for sharing!

Jacki link

7/1/2010 03:08:47 am

Fantastic post! It's an important reminder for us all to exercise a little critical thinking and never to take any "study" or "news" report at face value, especially in the internet age. Thank you for sharing your findings!

C Thornton link

7/1/2010 03:14:45 am

Harmony, thank you for sharing the info. This study came out about a year and half ago by the Amer. Plastics group, of course. But thank goodness, groups like us can see through their hidden agenda. This may sound like I am promoting our Clean Conscience reusable bags, but so what, I am. And I hope I can also share some useful information to you all.

It is a fact that if you have food in any surface or material, it has to be cleaned regularly in order to prevent bacterial growth. In the case of reusable eco friendly bags, it only makes sense that if you use it for food bagging, it needs to be washed regularly. What we have found through our product trials and customer experience, was that inasmuch as we like the natural quality of canvas, particularly organic, since it is cotton, it shrinks significantly after washing, and customers have complained that they look like rags after 2-3 washings, so they end up in their closet without being used....so that on its own, is wasteful.

Our Clean Conscience bags are made with woven 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles, aka, polyester, the same fiber that Patagonia uses for their fleece shirts. We chose this material for the sole reason of washability without shrinking, and its durability.

The common non- woven polypropylene is popular because it is soooo cheap (imported), affordably given away as promo bags. But we have had customers mention that they had to throw it away between 6 months to a year of use as they are not really well built to last....so they still end up in landfill like the plastic bags, for centuries. There was a study done about dyed purses coming from overseas that contained lead, and we just wonder how much lead is in these non-wovens that come in beautiful colors.

The paper or plastic debate will always be challenging, see our blog from this article from the Washington Post. Our mission is simple: Clean Conscience bags help divert trash from going into our landfills and oceans; and help raise awareness for un-wasting and repurposing; we make it here in America to help our textile factories in the US and our domestic bagmakers. The ITC estimates that between 2005-2007 the US imported over 500 plastic-based bags at a value of $4 billion. I wonder what the numbers are now...that's a lot of jobs for us! We wish we could compete with importers on pricing, so that we can make cleaner and greener choices from US-made products, a battle that may be hard to win for our domestic factories. But remember, as consumers, we have the power.

Happy shopping and make sure you wash your bags regularly! We have instructions here in our website:
How to Clean and Wash Bags?

Heidi link

7/1/2010 03:17:10 am

Thank you for this blog and the research you put into it! I have washed and stitched up an old reusable bag my husband brought into our family 10 years ago. It works. I still prefer the cotton bags we have but won't abandon the big petrochemical-based old timer until there is no more hope (I can't see its end coming though as my one time repair has put an end to the weak spots of the initial manufacturing).

Penny link

7/1/2010 04:13:45 am

Thanks Harmony for this information, I heard the news last week too and shook my head wondering just how "news" organizations do it...they repeat what they are told to repeat (from industry and corporations) without thought. Thanks for supplying this information, I have passed this link on to my fb and twitter followers. We have some lovely shopping bags that wash up nicely but because of the "news" I guess I will add an insert to our customers reminding them to wash bags regularly. Thanks for the post!

Ginger

7/1/2010 07:42:15 am

I have found I can wash the non-woven poly' bags with my regular laundry, then air dry them on a hanger. This wears them out a little less.
I also learned you can fix them with duct tape when something comes loose and they will keep on working, even if it is the handle.
This adds another six months or so to their usefulness. When they really get to the point I don't want to use them for groceries anymore I use them as a kneeling pad for when I garden. (Fill them up with other bags, old newspaper, or old rags, if you want a cushy knee pad.)

Marny link

7/1/2010 09:45:53 am

Thanks, Harmony! This is a GREAT illustration of industry-funded misinformation, which is all too prevalent in our media and our decision making because there is no indication by the media of the true source of their reports. I agree with you 100% about the non-ecofriendliness of reusable plastic bags. They are still plastic that eats up non-renewable resources and eventually ends up causing never-degrading pollution somewhere. Keep up the good fight!

Harmony link

7/1/2010 02:24:51 pm

THANKS for all the words of support and encouragement and for helping get the truth out.

Love the tips from Ginger. :)

C Thornton -- I am confused by your comment. The report I reference was released June 9, 2010 by the University of Arizon and Loma Linda University. Maybe you were referring to a similar study a year and a half ago? ALSO - not all cotton products shrink after washing and most that do will only shrink the first time they are washed. I have MANY cotton fabric bags (organic and non organic) and they MOST DEFINITELY do not look like rags after 2-3 washings. Think about it -- if cotton continued to shrink and look horrible after 2-3 washings why would we all still be wearing it? It sounds like you have a great, long-lasting product and I wish you all the best, but please consider the truthfulness of your own statements.

Dottie link

7/1/2010 04:04:35 pm

Good post. I have a problem with plastic bags & re-useable plastic bags both... In the long run it is all the same - non-biodegradable, and a questionable idea. I sewed cotton bags decades ago that I wash & still use. The Kenyan market baskets are good (gee, I wonder why they call them market baskets?) They figured our anti-bacterial soaps & etc. are creating sensitivities in children unexposed to the myriad bacteria we are normally exposed to in life... Am I missing something here? Sigh.

7/2/2010 01:51:54 am

I thought some of you might appreciate knowing about the Green Bag Lady (if you don't already). Oh her site you can find a pattern for making your own fabric bag with video instructions. She has GIVEN away over 10,000 bags worldwide! www.greenbaglady.org

Roberta link

7/10/2010 12:40:07 am

Thanks for sharing the background on this bogus report. Most people, me included, do not bother to look up these companies/agencies that are conducting these tests and reports. I posted a link to your post on my facebook to share this with my friends and family who also heard about this "report". Have a great week, fondly, Roberta

Debra

7/10/2010 06:12:43 am

I too had heard of the report, but I immediately poo-pooed it. I know that if I use a bag for meat, I should could possibly contaminate my other food with bacteria. But the report doesn't give common sense thought capabilities to anyone. These fear causing reports are as usual speaking to those folks who would be dumb enough to leave unpackage, bloody meat products in a bag with other foods, and who are most likely the same folks who grab a hot cup of McDonald's Coffee and expect that they won't get burned it they spill it on themselves. Geesh!

Lily link

12/6/2010 10:50:40 am

what about linen? isn't it supposed to be antibacterial. i love the look and fee. pardon me if this is redundant as i just scanned the article. Linen looks beautifully rich and loved even when wrinkled.

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For the LOVE of PLASTIC?

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