New bag law.
Indie I don't mind it but wish that the grocery stores would give us paper bags instead. Plastic bags are a fairly new item that have been found on the bottom of the ocean. Paper bags compost really well and make great school book covers.
Robert Rowe We as a species use way to much Plastic. We will be cleaning up the oceans for centuries. Yes before everyone gets on my case plastic does have a purpose in advancing our species … medical… and a few others. But we need let plastic go and recycle every we have and clean up this plastic waste issue.
LibertyThinker 
3wbdwnj No big deal. I've been bringing my own bags for years. Anyone who has a problem with this law must have zero love for nature.
Don't forget to occasionally wash those reusable bags!
maja2 I wish paper bags were able to be used. Don't understand why they can't be provided like they used to.
Luca I prefer using my (canvas) bags for shopping. They hold more (fewer trips from the car), and there's zero chance of them ripping/breaking.
Plastic straws, however, RULE over paper straws. I hate paper straws, they suck (no pun intended). They get soggy if you don't finish your drink relatively quickly. I'll be keeping a stash of plastic straws in my vehicle for whenever I get a drink requiring a straw.
JeffersonRepub I think getting away from plastic is a great idea. I have a question for the forum. I don’t want huge bags because of the weight. (Don’t want a 50 lb capacity bag) So what are your thoughts…….. canvas or nylon? Seems nylon is easier to wipe down
Local Gal I think we have other things we should be worrying about. This should be on the bottom of the list. I rule against this 120%. I feel bad for the elders who truly won't understand the reason, and will truly forget their bags ALL THE TIME!
IrishGirlWe reuse the plastic bags for our small cans in the bathrooms and the bedroom. But besides that what about all the food that comes in plastic in the stores, like milk, soda water, etc.
Patti I don’t mind using boxes, no different then BJ’s. When will they really get real about plastic. Pretty much everything in grocery store is wrapped in plastic.
auntiel I'm sure ShopRite and other merchants love it since it saves them money. If you look on eBay you can buy the same bags in bulk pretty cheap actually, when I run out of my massive stash that's what I'll do
Actually there are some very valid points as to why a ban does not make good sense. The fact it takes as much as 70% more energy to produce paper and cotton bags for example. There are many very valid points to consider.
I strongly recommend folks check out this site to read some more thoughts on a ban.
https://greenliving.lovetoknow.com/Why_Should_We_Not_Ban_Plastic_Bags
I guess I'll need to carry my own plastic bag to bring home my purchases that consist of at least 90% single use plastic packaging.
Greg "I guess I'll need to carry my own plastic bag to bring home my purchases that consist of at least 90% single use plastic packaging."
Excellent point. These bag/straw bans really just scratch the surface. Feel-good legislation. I recycle also, and I've ready plenty of articles on how THAT also isn't what people think it is; how expensive it can be to turn recyclables in new product. I'm all for not wasting resources, and not damaging the environment (but THAT is a whole 'nuther ELEPHANT in the room)... but alot of this is, unfortunately, nonsense. The issue is MUCH larger than 90% of people realize. They just think "yay! Ban plastic! I'm doing MY part in 'saving the planet' !!" When in fact....
https://maritime-executive.com/editorials/why-your-recycled-plastic-may-end-up-in-the-ocean
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2021/01/10/china-quits-recycling-us-trash-as-sustainable-start-up-makes-strides/?sh=4bc175585a56
Why not just require plastic bags to be recyclable?
Plastic bags will still be used in just about everyone's garbage can, so does this really make a difference?
Additionally, those nylon bags, even though reusable, are WAY worse in compost then a thin plastic bag
Darrin They ARE recyclable.... whether it's economically viable is another story though.
https://www.plasticfilmrecycling.org/recycling-bags-and-wraps/plastic-film-education-individuals/learn-whats-recyclable/
ianimal How are supermarket at home delivery services, Instacart, etc., going to handle this? I asked some pickers in Shoprite yesterday as they were putting items in plastic bags and they hadn't received any information yet.
OnTheEdge What I think many are missing with this law is how much those "single use" (even though many reuse those bags) bags are involved in our life. For all those that say "I've been using the reusable bags for ages now", how many bring those reusable bags into Lowes/Home Depot, Target, Advanced Auto, Wawa, Kohls, to the Mall, etc.
I don't think supermarkets are where the big problems are going to fall w/ this law. The fights and arguments are going to come when people go into these other stores and are either forced to purchase bags they don't want (which could cause even more waste if they are thrown out) or carry large quantity of items in their hands.
jnnjr Paperbags were banned because the super market lobby wanted them banned...they are very expensive compared to plastic bags
What are pet owners supposed to use to clean up after their pets??? People don’t clean up after them now!!!
Carolyn My own thought is there has got to be a way to get get control of this ever increasing use of plastic. Plastic waste is everywhere, roadsides, rivers, landfills, the ocean. Hopefully this is just the 1st step.
As Indie said - it's an enormous problem --- just because it doesn't get completely rid of plastic doesn't mean it isn't a step in the right direction ---What we've done to the earth is pretty awful - don't we want it on the road to better for our kids and grandkids?
4catmom Who remembers when they told us we needed to switch to plastic bags to save the environment? Plastic will be better because it's recyclable and we won't need to cut down the trees!!! I guess they got that wrong!! Maybe we should remember now when they are telling us we need to switch to all electric cars to save the environment!! Just a thought!!!
Exactly Dadof3! I remember when plastic bags were going to save us from the boogeyman of deforestation.
ChrisK Dadof3 is exactly right. I remember the whole "save the trees" thing, which is kind of funny since they are a RENEWABLE resource.
So, just to put this in some perspective, according to https://ourworldindata.org/ocean-plastics the US is responsible for approx. 0.25% of the plastic found in the ocean. By contrast, the Philippines alone was responsible for over 36% of the ocean plastic (and India is another 13%). Don't tell me that NJ's plastic bag ban is going to put a dent in the ocean plastic volume.
Now, there are other reasons than just the ocean plastic to restrict plastics, but I believe a lot of those arguments will backfire. https://techcrunch.com/2022/03/30/plastic-bag-bans/ The study there said that in California communities w/ bans or fees in place, the sale of 4-gallon trash bags increased by 55-75% and 8-gallon trash bag sales increased by 87-110%. Why is this??? We still need the plastic bags - the "single use" bag label is completely wrong because most people use the bags for a second purpose and will still need a plastic bag to do that job. SO, instead of reusing a plastic shopping bag, the Gov't is forcing us to purchase more (new) bags which require more energy (and fossil fuels) to make.
Exactly jnnjr. Lil ol NJ won’t even make a dent. There would have to be a worldwide ban.
Details of bags not allowed and allowed;
https://www.nj.com/business/2022/03/nj-plastic-bag-ban-garbage-produce-pet-waste-bags-still-ok-when-new-law-starts.html
jnnjr... you're digging too much! We don't ALL the facts! Just enough of them so we feel good about ourselves!! LOL
Kimberlysea Put trash in the can, then empty that can into the one you drag to the street. Another problem solved.
Roywhite 
Stymie Zip Lock needs to be held accountable for their part in destroying the planet also. If we as consumers have to change to do our part, so should Glad wrap & Hefty. Time for the butcher to wrap your meat in paper again kids.
No one has mentioned the heavy duty garbage bags that we all use.. I can’t imagine them breaking down in the garbage dumps!! This does not look like it was very well thought out.. time will tell!
10,000 steps isn't exactly a journey; it's a normal day for a non-sedentary person.
The actual Lao Tzu proverb is that a journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step.
I am all for saving the environment but like others have said, consumer single use plastics are NOT the plastic use that is killing the planet. Start regulating packaging processes and plastic waste on a corporate level and then worry about individuals.
Kat 
Calico696 Oh and another thing — target was handing out free reusable bags this week and mine literally ripped in half while I was bringing it inside. The tag said good for 100 uses. LOL.
"But it saves the super markets so much money"
Yes!!! I can't wait to see this savings reflected in the food prices!!
har-dee-har-har
Supermarkets and the like type stores will save a lot of $$. I would guess there are biodegradable bags available on the market or, if not, there should be. I'm all for saving the environment. I agree with Kat's comment: "Start regulating packaging processes and plastic waste on a corporate level and then worry about individuals." And, like JR said, "Yes!!! I can't wait to see this savings reflected in the food prices!!" That's sure to happen!! Ha Ha Ha!!
Mrs. Pipes Yeah savings just like the self checkouts we got savings LOL
Was in target today and they are giving out reusable bags when you check out, 1 per customer each time you check out.
For those that say 'recycle'-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJnJ8mK3Q3g
Watch the whole thing.
Josh I have stacks of plastic bags I’ve taken from shop rite over the years. No problem bringing my own plastic bags is there?
Scotty There was an interesting, and informative, article in Sunday's Star Ledger about this new bag law, if anyone wants to read it.
I understand that this new law could be an inconvenience to some. I've been using cloth reusable bags for my groceries for many years and find that if you keep them in your car, several stuffed inside of one, they are always there when you need them. Eventually it will become a habit for you. I also have some small net bags for produce & fruit, instead of those plastic baggies you can't get open.
As for the people who use them for "pooper duty", I've noticed lately how many other items have plastic wrappers that could be used (more than once) for this: bread bags, frozen vegetable bags, the inside wrappers in cereal boxes, the newspaper wrappers (which I hate), potato chips or snack bags, etc. Also, you can buy rolls of biodegradable bags for this purpose too (if you want).
I just want to do what I can, small as it might be, to remove or prevent any more plastic in our environment and our food and water. Every little bit might help, especially if we all pitch in.
Lonesome Dove It is going to be interesting when there are no bags. Can you imagine someone scanning (or not) all of their items and then dumping them back in the cart. How will they know if all items were indeed scanned or if some were bypassed. They going to have workers go thru receipts item by item? I wouldn't be surprised if losses go up.
ccbw ccbw - Not sure if u are aware... but ShopRite has cameras looking down on Every self-checkout. If there's any doubt as to what was scanned - they can review your entire check-out / scan process. I'd assume all the other retail outlets do this as well (Walmart, etc) So... keep that in mind next time ya self check-out, and remember not to pick ur nose.... they can see u!
CommonSense Plastic bags are already banned in Hudson County. I wasn't aware of that when I bought a bunch of stuff at Quick Check. When I asked for a bag, they said I would have to pay for one. Can't remember the how much but it was inexpensive. Weis has those reusable plastic bags for ten cents and I imagine that's what we'll see in most places if we don't bring our own bag and don't want to purchase a "nicer" one. Shoprite has the best reusable bags in my opinion.
Smilingbecs This is gonna make it Cumbersome for curbside pick up.
If I get a cheap reusable bag automatically when I use curbside pick up, and I don’t re use it because I use curbside pick up, have we solved the problem?
Babit I got a coffee at Quik Chek today... I surprised they still have STYROFOAM cups... in a state that is banning plastic straws and bags, I'm shocked they hadn't banned Styrofoam YEARS ago.... pfft...
UH-UH!!! THEY shouldn't be ALLOWED to sell it!! AMIRIGHT???? I mean, I'm not allowed to have plastic straws (which I could recycle), or plastic bags (which I could recycle), but a styrofoam cup (which I could recycle) is AOK? Riiiiiiight.
I call BS. Because it is. Are we "saving the planet" or aren't we????
hahahahahaha
Steve Davis I was just at a convenience store. The owner told me not only do we have to supply our own bags, we have to bag everything ourselves. Any body else hear that?
Regardless of the environmental impact of this law, the large companies who paid for the bags will save millions of dollars and pass zero of it onto us.
Just like I now have to do self checkout or wait on interminable lines for an actual person.
Whenever these big companies even get a whiff of a possible cost increase, prices immediately shoot up (see recent price increases due to inflation), but anytime they save a buck, consumers never see one dime in lower prices
I hope it is at least good for the environment in the long term
JeffersonRepub,
Well, the ban starts on May 4th, right???
Aren’t plastic bags still available in the stores???
auntiel, I have been told by Shoprite cashiers that they are not allowed to pack bags that I bring. I thought it was a covid thing. Maybe not.
emerald,
Yes may 4. And? Is styrofoam also being banned on May 4? (no)
So I repeat: are we "saving the planet", or aren't we? McDonalds stopped using Styrofoam food containers decades ago... just more contradiction from the powers that be.
Workers are not allowed to pack the bags that we bring?
Let’s hope that’s not the case! Otherwise it sounds like the entire store will be Self Check Out!
Big Companies Saving more Money at the Customers Expense! Ugh!
According to the Star Ledger article I mentioned earlier, polystyrene will also be banned on May 4th. So, it seems that the Styrofoam cups will not be permitted then.
Also, Shoprite cashiers are not permitted to pack (or even touch) our cloth bags. This is a Covid rule they've had for quite some time, so I'm going to assume that once the bag ban goes into effect, everyone will have to do their own bagging. I've bagged my own since I worked at Shoprite as a teenager (many moons ago).
Last trip to Shoprite I brought my own reusable bags for a “dry run” in preparation for the new regs.
No way I could keep up with the checker.
Law is gonna create huge delays at the beginning.
They may even need to open more than 4 registers
( haha) to handle problems.
My solution will be to either bring a large Tupperware storage container or several cardboard boxes (ala ALDI) expedite my experience.
JeffersonRepub-
Is styrofoam also being banned on May 4th?
Yes.
For someone so emotional about styrofoam cups, get the facts.
I agree with Stymie. I've been bagging my own groceries my whole adult life, and I can't keep up with the cashiers either. I end up breathless because I am 73 and I am wearing my mask. And then when they finish giving me my receipt, they start on the very next customer before I've even managed to finish bagging and putting my wallet back into my purse.
emerald-
I assure you, emotion has nothing to do with it. It's called sarcasm. If they're banning styrofoam too, at least they are being consistent.
Plastic not paper! Save the TREES!
Uh... wait... not plastic either!! Bring your own! Made out of some kind of cloth, I guess... now we have to figure out what materials are being used to create shopping bags, so we can figure out what to save next (Sheep? LOL)
"Instacart will have its shoppers buy reusable bags at the register, a spokesperson said. That cost will be added on to a customer’s order price."
I've been using reusable tote bags for years to do all my shopping. It's not a big deal. It's not that hard to get into the habit of bringing them with you to the store. Just keep them in your car and grab some before you go into the store. You could also use cardboard boxes. Aldi's grocery store does not provide any bags--you have to bring your own. Think of what folks did prior to plastic bags....they used paper or reusable, tote-like bags bags. Stuff you purchased was sometimes wrapped in newspaper or tied up with string. I'm strict about what I bring into my house, since it will be my problem and my money and my time to dispose of it. So pretty much I minimize plastic bags from stores and other packaging materials that I bring into my house.
na They should do it the Amazon way
Provide FREE heavy duty bags that would be returned..shoprite could put a quarter deposit on each bag
Amazon?? LOLOLOL
Probably the largest user of cardboard boxes in the US at this point. Recyclable, yes. But many states don't recycle. And half the time they seem to use a box 2x-3x as large as necessary for the item shipped (LOTS of plastic air bubble packing too)
Amazon themselves should have recycling drop-off centers for the amount they generate LOL
Amazon used to deliver groceries via the post office. It was called amazon fresh...different than the current version with wholefoods
They would use heavy duty green shopping bags...the post office would pick them up on the next visit..if you kept them theyvwould charge you for them...no reason shoprite couldn't do the same..just use the quarter deposit scheme that works so well with the carts...
When I'm at a restaurant for lunch or dinner I carry in my own container and package my own left overs. I and my Sisters have been doing this for several years. I am considering transferring anything I might buy that comes in those stiff plastic containers in the Supermarket to my own containers which I will carry into the store and make the transfer "after" the item is checked. I will then toss the "plastic containers" into the Supermarket's garbage. Yes, it may slow down the checkout process for which I will feel badly. Maybe more registers will open. Hmm.
Most people don’t have that kind of time, Mrs. Pipes.
The funny thing is the “single use” plastic bags are being used more than once making them reusable-to a point. I’ve even seen sleeping mats made out of them and given to homeless individuals.
Bags are a small part of the problem. What’s next? Plastic water water bottles, because those things are just as bad.
3wbdwnj; I agree regarding the time. I don't have much extra time myself so I truly understand. Our Supermarkets could have shown how much they value their customers by providing free multi-use biodegradable bags regularly. They would have received very good press and word of mouth and other markets would probably have followed the lead. I heard one of the markets handed out some last week or the week before. There are so many other plastics to be addressed.
As an aside, Trader Joes provides biodegradeable plastic produce bags in their stores, so if they can do it, others can do it.
Additionally, many "stryofoam" containers are being made with corn that breaks down. Those packing peanuts? Many are now corn-based and dissolveable in water. I should know, because my dog started eating them and they literally melted in her mouth.
Rather than banning plastic bags (the thing people need the most) altogether, we could be requiring businesses use, say 50% biodegradeable plastics for all in-store packaging, and step it up over time to eventually be 100% biodegradeable in 5-10 years.
There are so many options and ways to do this better.
So with the "bring your own bags" are the cashiers going to bag them? Are all grocery stores doing this? I'm so confused. First no paper bags lets go plastic, then no plastic lets go back to paper, and now plastic but nope now that too is going away. Just ridiculous
htownlifer At the end of the day
They no longer have to employ baggers or buy bags..cashiers will be gone next
Bug3, are we sure they didn’t already get rid of cashiers? Shoprite never seems to have more than two human beings working registers at a time. It’s so frustrating.
I was in Weis early evening last week. There was not one cashier at a register for check out. But, there were several employees (around 6) near the front of the store. They were talking; not stocking shelves. This change will be difficult for some of the elderly people who still are able to do their own shopping.
You’re right, Mrs. Pipes. Also, parents with young children and disabled persons. So many other ways to solve this problem.
N.J. plastic bag ban: 23 answers to your urgent questions:
https://www.nj.com/news/2022/04/nj-plastic-bag-ban-23-answers-to-your-urgent-questions.html
The way that item's get shipped into stores and warehouses makes this new bag law a pointless attempt to reduce plastic use especially since most people shop online nowadays. You order a shirt which usually arrives in a mailing bag inside another clear bag. Some items arrive to stores covered in plastic before hitting shelves. Every pack of socks comes individually wrapped and packed in yet another bag; purses arrive in bags and even the tags, handles, zippers all covered in 'protective' plastic.
Pretzels They are already trying to roll back parts of the law
https://wrnjradio.com/new-bill-would-exempt-online-grocery-delivery-and-pickup-from-new-bag-ban/
Lonesome Dove,
You don’t have to pay your bill until you finish bagging your groceries and they are in your cart.
The cashier can’t start the next customer until you pay and get your receipt.
Take your time and take care of yourself.
You know what, Emerald? You're absolutely right, and that's what I'm going to do from now on. I always feel rushed and stressed while I'm trying to bag as fast as I can.
“The cashier can’t start the next customer until you pay and get your receipt“
But they already do this now. All this will do is hold up other customers.
Lonesome Dove, Take care of yourself and your health. Do what you need to do for you. If I wait a few extra minutes I will survive. I do not have much extra time as I said in a post above, but I'm willing to wait. If the Supermarkets experience trouble in their "check out" lines perhaps they will take some steps to help their customers instead of "selling bags" to their customers.
The era of "customer service" is coming to end I'm afraid, pretty much across the board. These last several years, I have experienced worsening customer service on pretty much all fronts. The customer seems to matter less and less. Their MONEY still matters, but after they've gotten that, you don't seem to matter much anymore.
Not in all cases of course, but in most. In my experiences.
When I was in Shoprite this morning, the cashier said they are telling all their customers that the cashiers are now permitted to bag our groceries if we have our own cloth bags. Change in policy. Perhaps they've been reading our comments here.
I used Shoprite pickup; they charge $1.50 extra for all the reusable bags they give me on each order. In essence I now pay $1.50 to get a bigger, better, heavier plastic bag with more plastic in place of the single use thin ones. I have no need for MORE reusable bags, they will not let me use mine, they will not let me return mine (although I will). They can't afford to offer storage. I can not afford to keep these bags. So either they take them back or I put them in the landfill as my new garbage bags replacing my plastic ones.
I wrote the State and said, for me, pollution wise, this is going in the wrong direction and that maybe the State can fund some storage units for Shoprite.... Yeah, they thanked me for my suggestion.
Anyone want reusable bags, should have about 20-40 a month soon........
This law is flaw and simply a political move. These bags will end up in the ocean just like the old ones, yet they are larger and worse for the environment. At a time when people are struggling to make ends meet, why put this burden in them. Off a tax credit instead for those using their reusable bags at stores.
Not today 
JL I thought grocery stores would still have plastic bags for meat. I was at shop rite yesterday and the only offer for my chicken and beef was to purchase a bag for .33. I personally don’t mind using my own bags for shopping but don’t want raw chicken in a reusable bag.
TownFriend I basically walk through a store with a backpack now. Loading it up like a shoplifter. So weird that that is the new norm. Crazy you can bring in luggage to fill up with goods.
Sounds like the worlds gonna end because we have to cut back a little on using plastic.
Geez.
Suck it up....
TownFriend,
They are allowed to have those thin produce bags for raw meat, but it is not required. Those thin (no handle) bags are the only plastic stores are allowed to provide. Did they not have the produce bags in the meat section?
Lonesome Dove - I was told at register in Washington Shop Rite that they are not allowed to bag or even handle the bags we bring in so we need to bag everything ourselves. Sure will slow down everything if they just stand and watch us do it all.
justwondering TownFriend: there still were thin plastic bags (like in produce) around the meat case. Put your meat in those.
In Hackettstown Shoprite now bags for you with your own bags. The bag your own policy changed two or three weeks ago.
GC Justwondering & GC, Mansfield Shoprite cashier told me they could now bag for us with our own bags. I haven't been there since the law went into effect, but I believe the cashier. I think Mansfield SR and Washington SR are different ownership groups, so they could have different policy about that. I have always bagged my own groceries, so this doesn't change my habits. But there are many people who just stood there watching the cashier do it for them. Seems like things will be slow-going in Washington if that is, indeed, their new policy.
OK, this is not "in the bag," but if you want to comment, the "bag lady" for the State is "jill," and she can be reached at singleuseplastics@dep.nj.gov.
site is: https://www.nj.gov/dep/get-past-plastic/#:~:text=Beginning%20May%204%2C%202022%2C%20the,single%2Duse%20plastic%20carryout%20bags
Their slogan is "get past plastic" which, for curbside, is exactly the opposite of what's actually happening. We are making more pollution.
When I went to Wies Thursday I put my plastic bags on the belt with the amount of items I wanted in each, so they wouldn’t be to heavy. I was shocked at how I was treated by the cashier. She got very pi$$y. She treated my groceries like they were garbage. Throwing the cans on top of my bread. Throwing my milk on top of my eggs. Very disrespectful. I took the high road and remained calm. I am sure this is a very stressful situation for them. I let it go once , I will not let it go twice. I don’t mind bagging my own as long as the person behind is patient.
Now when is the state going to go after the commercial hard plastic packaging that hand tools, kitchen items, all kinds of store bought items come packed in?
Indie- If they did that. Wouldn’t it take us back to the 40’s. What would your shampoo, toothpaste, peanut butter, etc. be packed in? I guess either glass or tin. There goes Tupperware out of business. Lol
CraftBeerBob Everyone should understand that the businesses love this law as it takes one more expense off their shoulders/income statements.
hammer Good point Hammer. I wouldn’t be surprised if the larger retailers in the state were the ones lobbying for the law.
I’m surprised they didn’t target beverage companies. They could have forced them to go back to all cans or glass. NJ a nanny state for sure.
It's a start and that's a good thing, but it already needs work if you use curbside as noted above.
And it's not all profit for the business; there's a cost for pissing off customers, retraining clerks, etc. Plus, us curb-siders pay $1.50 a trip for all the bags in our order. They can't be making money on that deal. It's just that this causes more pollution, not less for curb-siders part of their customer base. Need to fix that.
As to the rest --- I strive to pollute less, not more, every time I get the chance. I recycle all the plastic I can so who cares what the shampoo comes in. Bottles have gotten thinner, tops are recycled now, all good moves IMO.
Mail order does not reduce the pollution, probably adds as each item is boxed, then over-boxed, and now you deal with two instead of one box. Used to be store's problem and they got bulk so better economies of scale probably on the overboxing. Due to mail order, my recycle is at max, every time I take it to the curb.
But I do not want to bag my own, that seems a step in the wrong direction for me, customer satisfaction wise.
Paper bags have been recycled for years..why ban them too?.. cus they are very expensive for retailers
Let’s not forget to bring your own bags into stores, like Marshall’s. A lady had a cart full of clothes & dumped them all into her trunk bagless. Lowes for example replaced plastic with paper bags but I learned not all stores are doing that.
Feeling good I have my groceries delivered each week. This past week they were delivered in the store’s new bags. They were very heavy compared to the white plastic ones. These new bags were stuffed full, one weighing 17 pounds, the other 6 pounds. I only weighed two bags, but the rest of the bags were equally heavy. I much prefer the white plastic as I reuse them for all kinds of purposes. For medical reasons I am supposed to keep what I lift to 7 pounds. I’m quite sure I am not the only one with this problem. I hope this trend ends very soon.
Spring fever Department stores can use paper bags, just not grocery stores above a certain very small square footage.
+1 Babit! We too do curbside every week - we were doing this long before the pandemic. We are disgusted that the state didn't think this aspect through with having a surplus of heavier, reusable bags that most people might just toss in the garbage, adding to more landfill problems.
We will donate ours to the food pantries for now but I would imagine that only solves the issue short-term.
There has to be a better solution for curbside grocery pickup…why can’t they hold the order in their carts or those stackable plastic totes on wheels and transfer the items directly into boxes or bags in our vehicle? I would even transfer the items myself.
Jules Jules
You do realize that the majority of customers who use curbside pickup and home delivery are disabled and elderly. Your suggestion works great for the too lazy to shop crowd but the elderly and disabled would be put at huge disadvantage if they had to unload groceries from a cart into boxes or their own bags..almost like a 3rd world country situation
Bug- I am not lazy, elderly or disabled and curbside and home delivery are part of my everyday life. It’s called time constraints, spending more quality time with family and convenience. Has nothing to do with lazy. Your premise is 100% flawed.
My premise about elderly and handicapped being at a disadvantage? Compared to healthy people who don't want to shop for whatever reason?.. cool..just be happy that you are able-bodied enough to transfer groceries from a tote to your own bags or boxes..it will be a great workout for you but you would completely lose the advantage of curbside pickup
Bug3, before you make comments like that, you should always realize that you never know what anyone’s situation is. This is the problem with so many people today but that’s another post. I happen to shop for several elderly family members and because of this, it’s easier for me to do the curbside pick up because the orders can be so large. I am not suggesting that everyone should have to load their own groceries but it would be nice to give the customer the option to minimize the wastefulness of all of these heavier bags.
Maybe the stores should make accommodations for the disabled and the elderly. Sure it wouldn’t be to hard to figure out. As for everyone else “ bag it up”, stop crying. 30 years ago everyone bagged the groceries. Nobody died.
I plan on throwing all my useable bags in the ocean every week just as a point to Murphy this law is retarded and still won’t solve anything, but is purely politics.
Not Today, you’re comment is very immature!! I have no problem using reusable bags to protect the oceans !! And leaving a better earth for my grandchildren and great grandchildren!! Grow up!!!
Havaclue17 Havaclue, most people share your sentiment. But until the *world* is onboard and doing their part, and not dumping their garbage directly into the ocean, literally nothing will change. This is a useless law that burdens the general public already exhausted from a global pandemic and inflation.
I applaud the law; it’s just not in a workable form for curbside which is a new-ish and size-able revenue stream and market. Fix the implementation here, less bags not more, that’s all I ask.
I'd like to think that every little bit we can do is worth trying. Let's give this new process some time, see how it works. People need to give it a chance and also adjust our routines a bit. Perhaps it'll turn out to be a worthwhile attempt or it won't. It can be amended or adjusted if too many hardships or obstacles are encountered.
100 million marine animals die each year from plastic waste alone. 100,000 marine animals die from getting entangled in plastic yearly – this is just the creatures we find! 1 in 3 marine mammal species get found entangled in litter, 12-14,000 tons of plastic are ingested by North Pacific fish yearly.
This should be workable - even if it takes some tweaking - and there is so much more to do
How many Mansfield Township Shop Rite bags wind up in the North Pacific?
From: https://www.dw.com/en/multinationals-polluting-oceans-with-plastic-in-the-philippines/a-40638102
"A McKinsey study published in 2015 ranked the Philippines as the third worst plastic polluter of the world's oceans, behind China and Indonesia. Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia also made it into the top 10."
This is akin to forcing people in the northeast to conserve water because of the extreme drought conditions in the Colorado River basin. One has absolutely no impact on the other, good or bad.
This whole thing reminds me of the old "Eat your vegetables, people are starving in Africa" rationale.
My answer, "Send the vegetables to Africa."
Maybe, just maybe, plastic should be banned in Asia.
Courtney1 So, let's see how we can ignore personal responsibility and blame someone else. Just because the other countries aren't doing what you consider adequate steps to alleviate the problems then your answer will be if they aren't I won't either. Whatever we can do in our small part of the world to help the environment, the quality of living, or the harm done to nature we should do as a matter of pride that you care about the people and world around you. The choice is yours how you live your life and how it affects the people around you even if they aren't loved ones.
MK MK you can still do all that. Just stop forcing it on everyone else when it literally wont matter.
bug,
is that a serious question?
if so, the last time I checked all of the rivers and streams in warren county end up in the ocean.
All the rivers and streams in Warren County end up in the Delaware River. However, the Delaware only really flows as far south as Trenton, at which point it becomes tidal and more of an estuary than a river past Philadelphia and Wilmington, DE all the way through Delaware Bay to Cape May.
The mathematics of the probabilistic model for such things is way beyond my pay-grade, but the length of time it would take debris to churn the 150 or so miles from Trenton to the Atlantic Ocean proper would probably be measured in thousands of years.
3wbdwnj, how could it not matter? Your resistance to change for the good of everyone is the reason they mandate it. If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. I do not believe changes to people's behavior even when good for the future of everyone come easily and because of people's lack of willingness to change what they do makes the requirement mandated so at least a dent is made in the issue. Change is uncomfortable and inconvenient but sometimes necessary if there will be a reasonable future for everyone. It will never be perfect, or the problems fully corrected but that doesn't mean we can't try to help.
Go for it MK. I am thinking of a phrase that involves relieving oneself and a flagpole.
Again. Imo polluting less is better than polluting more.
I find it hard to believe that this new law
bothers some so much. I would like the broken parts fixed, but applaud the law. I’m glad to help pollute less especially if the cost in time and money is miniscule. More than willing to help set a better example for the future.
Keep measuring, weighing, computing the odds by the micron, and blaming others if that works for you. I choose to help to pollute less. Joyfully.
It's no big deal IMO .Home Cheapo and Dollar Tree are using paper bags in case you forget to bring your own . If governor Goldman Sachs bans gasoline powered lawn equipment like California did then it becomes more problematic as many people with large lawns can't afford to shell out 5K or more for battery powered equipment without the range needed to finish the job - and lawn contractors may as well just go out of business .
If the tree huggers want everything to be electric then they shouldn't be hypocrites against nuclear power . Electric cars pollute at the power plant instead of the tailpipe .Sunshine and wind only goes so far with the extreme loads that would be put on the grid with a total switch to electric.
97XBAM @97xbam the people making these laws are profiting off of them. Take a look at the stocks that these politicians are invested in. They don't care about the environment, the bottom line is money nobody gives a damn.
I can't believe the amount of self aggrandizing environmental grandstanding taking place on this thread. We do not need more government regulation. We need more personal responsibility. Most of the waste in the oceans is from 3rd world countries where sanitation has no or little regulation. Some areas do not have landfills, or incinerators. For example; in Peru and India, fully loaded garbage trucks will back up to a river bank and unload, but my shoprite bag is to blame.
We can also argue about; the energy required to manufacture reusable or paper bags, the cost to consumers for said bags, the sanitary nature of plastic bags when that chicken container leaks...
Where does it stop? Should we ban single use drink containers as well? All this green nonsense is just to make YOU feel good... It does nothing for the environment.
OP I don't get why everyone freaks out over "climate change" when the earth could literally be obliterated by a big enough asteroid at any point in time, or a strong enough solar flare could take out our atmosphere- a super volcano eruption could wipe most of us out! If we're going to make this world a better place while we're still on it, I think our best bet would be to stop breeding.
I've been using my reusable bags before it became a law, just a big animal lover. @OP yes, we should ban them as well as hold other countries just as accountable. We need to keep this garbage out of the ocean before it become's too acidic to sustain life. But you're right, it's basically pointless because there are just too many people on the planet. Hence why I think we need to stop having so many children
Talk about a conspiracy - Plastic bags aren't 'banned', only the big stores aren't allowed to GIVE them out. We can still bring them IN to use them. So what kind of a BAN is that? These stores are not only SAVING money from not providing their customers bags, they're also making a profit by now SELLING bags to their suckers..eh I mean, customers to use. Everything costs twice as much these days and now we also have to pay to carry their over-priced items! Especially during covid, these are the same stores that were allowed to be open and make money. The profit made by these stores over the last few years has to be quite the pretty penny!!!
Pretzels, if your concerned about overpopulation, why don’t you do something about it? You could easily reduce the population size by one. But I suppose you’re life is more valuable. Got it.
The fact that so many people are completely missing the point about 3rd world pollution is frustrating. The vast majority of bags in the US get recycled. An enormous portion of those bags that DONT get recycled are thrown in the garbage and end up in landfills. The amount of single use bags that are used in the US, get littered, and actually end up in the ocean is minuscule. Contrast that with countries like India that purposefully dump trash directly into the ocean. Can you see the difference yet?
If you want to actually help the environment and stop the (extremely) small amount of bags we use from ending up in the ocean, raise the fine for littering to $20,000. Problem solved.
And yet, polluting less is still better than polluting more, IMO.
You can make excuses, you can blame others more worthy, but that will always be true.
I would like less pollution everywhere. In the air, on the land, in our water ways.
So when we have to throw out our garbage for the day, left-over food, junk from the frig, cat litter, what are we supposed to put it in before it hits the trash can or dumpster?!
Just dump it all in the outdoor trash container or dumpster?
are they for real?
Hackresident That was my point. I always reused the bags for trash. Now I just need to buy trash bags. Still using bags.
Carlin was great - two part documentary about him coming up on HBO starting on the 20th
Yep take away free garbage bags to get you to now pay for garbage bags. About as asinine as believing taking away Fulll serve at the pumps will drastically lower gas prices. Sheep will get what sheep deserve.
We' go from the sea and landfills being with fewer plastic bags, to:
Infestations of cockroaches and vultures in garbage cans and dumpsters with loose food in the cans, and also loose rotten food thrown down on the ground to stay as the garbage trucks drop out all loose, spoiled food on the ground + not into their trucks!!
ShopRite won’t give me a plastic bag for my groceries but they can sell me string beans in this plastic bag.
Go ahead, poke the bear ;-). Soon they will put the loose beans in your reusable bag.
JimT 3wdbwnj--GOD FORBID any of us are asked to take on even the smallest inconvenience to reduce the use of plastic that is choking our planet.
Good thing thinking like yours wasn’t prevalent in the early ‘40’s.
We’d all be speaking German.
You *still* don't get it guys. I’m all for reducing waste. It’s just a pointless law because in the grand scheme of things, there’s so much more plastic out there than these bags. Immeasurable amounts. NJ is looking in the wrong direction to fix this problem.
Our entire way of life revolves around plastics. We aren’t going to go back. Plastics are here to stay.
i hope they sell a set of 50 or 100 small plastic bags on Amazon or Ebay. Does anyone know --- I haven't looked yet.
3wb; if you’re all for reducing waste, then how can you be against reducing waste via this law?
Even if there are better things to do. Even if other countries waste more. Doesn’t this still reduce waste?
@3wbdwnj You got ripped off big time. A 1,000ct box of new bags is at least half the price on eBay, free shipping too.
WompWomp Stymie…I clean up a 150 yard section of road in front of my home every year and pick up a contractor size bag of plastic bottle, bags & aluminum cans. It’s to much work to carry 4 bags to the ShopRite.
No, Babit, it doesn’t reduce waste. As we have seen from the Instacart, et Al crowd, we are getting inundated with the reusable bags to the point people are going to start throwing them out. Furthermore, studies have shown that in areas with these laws in place, the sale of new plastic bags (ie garbage bags) almost doubles which means we are just trading one plastic bag that may get a second use in life for a nice new plastic bag that will only get one use in its life.
Babit because I use them for the often leaky milk container, the wet fresh meat packages, ice cream, rotisserie chickens that leak, etc. to be placed in a REUSABLE BAG I CANNOT WASH. You do you.
I get it. I reuse them too but too many, can’t reuse all.
If jnnjr is right, too bad those didn’t get to the eight states that banned the bags.
Less pollution is better. I have plenty of other bags for spilt milk. You only have too many reusable bags if process is broken.
Do people really use these tiny single use bags for garbage? Seems small and flimsy for my kitchen trash can? Maybe powder room, scraps n such, but a glad bag replacement? Although I try to avoid putting organics in inorganic containers before tossing.
Then again, we could just pony up snd pay for single use biodegradable bags, but can’t imagine you want to spend money to pollute less.
Still like the new law once they work the curbside kinks out.
“Then again, we could just pony up snd pay for single use biodegradable bags, but can’t imagine you want to spend money to pollute less.”
Trader Joe’s already did this before the ban (Not really a “ban,” is it?) without paying up for them.
If they could do it…
3wb: not quite. They replaced their vegetable plastic bags with biodegradable‘s. They switched their single use shopping bags for paper bags, I might support thar.
I was a big supporter of paper bags and would rather have gone that way however there is scientific evidence that the entire process of making and throwing out paper bags is worse for the environment than plastic. I believe it’s mostly in the manufacturing process.
I cannot validate this is true, but obviously one would have to know before advocating. I always like the idea of paper because I like the idea of growing trees. Not to mention you can recycle paper, and it’s biodegradable, although not as quickly as we would like once its oxygen deprived in the landfill.
Got a new CD today. Big business is trying real hard to control recycling waste. See photo.
How about my Amazoo order for two tubes of tooth paste. One order, two tubes, two trucks, two days, lots of cardboard.
Guess they are “priming” for single-package drone delivery.
Some bugs to be worked out.
It’s only bs if you spin it that way.
Anytime you pollute less, and this is less, it’s a better thing than polluting more.
I agree, anything else is bs.
Oh it’s bs alright. No one was stopping you from reusing bags before the law. What if there was a ban on BYO bags?
LOL @ Babit the Eco-SJW ordering toothpaste from Amazon when he/she could have walked/biked to the local grocery store and gotten it..
Green Trees The plastic bag law is feel good legislation from Governor snaggletooth since all garbage goes to landfills in PA .
Wondering where we can recycle plastic bags now -
shop-rite used to have cans for them - but not now--- so where, please
Iris I still have lots of plastic bags to recycle. Newspaper delivery bags, bread bags, occasional bags from produce at Shoprite, bird seed, lots. I used to take that to Shoprite recycling bin, so glad to see this thread. I think Target has a bin also. Tickner's has one but it's always overflowing. Even though my garbage collector does recycling, they don't take this kind of plastic. I know it's a drop in the bucket, but I just want to do something to help our planet.
Can't one simply put the plastic bags in their recycling containers at home? I think that is what 3wbdwnj was thinking. If folks are already "compliant" and recycling all of the other items why separate plastic bags? Just curious.
I as well as every responsible dog owner has a catch 22 situation. I recycle everything I can, always have. However with dogs I use lots of plastic bags when walking them off my property. The content of said bags as well as the bag ends up in the trash not the recycling bin. No, I do not buy special biodegradable dog waste bags. As an aside, if anyone needs to liberate a stock of plastic bags I would be happy to retrieve them from you. They will be put to good use! LOL.
Plastic "film" such as the old grocery bags, shrink wrap around cases of bottled water, etc. are NOT considered recyclable by most municipal/private "single-stream" recycling programs.
I hadn't realized the extent of film and plastic that was not acceptable in the curbside or single stream recycling points.
Apparently there are several locations in our area for this type of recycling.
https://bagandfilmrecycling.org/
That list may be woefully out of date. A lot of places got overwhelmed and quit offering it. Call before you go.
The trash haulers have explained the issue with all the bags on their own is they get caught in the sorting machines. I used them all up as trash can liners. Then I can throw them out full and it's not an issue.
I can't get enough plastic bags. We use them for cat litter, can liners, transporting stuff etc. When we go to stores in PA we put only one item in each bag. LMAO
I actually purchased several boxes of plastic bags just be for the BS ban went into effect. Yup, all it does is shift more cost onto the consumer.
For the love of Pete, do not drive out of your way to recycle them! It’s an even bigger waste of fuel.
Reuse the grocery bags like we all do in small trash cans and throw out the rest.
People really have so many bags that they’re driving them to recycling centers? Sheesh, we ran out of bags a few months ago and had to resort to buying a case on Amazon. We use them, like others have mentioned, in a variety of different ways.
Consigliere - IKR? Maybe I should just go sit at a recycling center and take them from people as they arrive.
Glad to know I’m not the only one who bought a case of those bags, consig and calico.
have a Litter Locker for the cat litter - have sturdy bags for groceries - need to get rid of the plastic bags some amazon stuff comes in - plastic wrappers from paper napkins etc---wish shop rite still took them -
Blackcat123 "need to get rid of the plastic bags some amazon stuff comes in - plastic wrappers from paper napkins etc"
Dream on, never gonna happen. I can't wait until some people with brains actually get into office and reverse all these ridiculous "laws".
Yes, Calico, I agree with your comments. The ban on plastic bags In My Humble Opinion is ridiculous. There are many other plastics that accumulate that have No additional uses. The plastic bags had quite a few other uses as several posters have mentioned, but now we have to buy bags which enriches the manufacturers and supermarkets too. When we shop in PA I put one item in each bag, and I'm happy to have several more of those bad plastic bags to take home and use in the ways mentioned above.
Calico - she's saying she has those things to dispose of, not that they need to be eliminated. Sheesh.
MB If I misread I apologize to you MB. I guess I got confused by the following comment, "I can't wait until some people with brains actually get into office and reverse all these ridiculous "laws".
I ask so I can be enlightened and read the comment correctly, "what laws should be reversed?" Thank you.
MB - Yes, you are correct. I misread her comment. Apologies.
Mrs. Pipes - The plastic bag law should be reversed immediately. It doesn't solve or help anything at all. If you want me to go into all the other ridiculous laws that need to be reversed, we will be here for a week and would be way off topic. lol
Calico, Definitely agree! I wish they would start by reversing that ridiculous Plastic Bag Law.
I like the new law, have not needed to buy bags, there are still plenty, and will buy biodegradable if needed.
For all who say, but I have worse single use plastic thingees and therefore, the bag law is useless, well, that’s a bit illogical. I am glad to help reduce my plastic footprint if not too inconvenient. This is not too inconvenient to me now that shoprite recycles the reusables.
Now let’s ban those other single use plastic thingees. Grow more trees!
Babbit “If not too inconvenient”
This is different for everyone. It is extremely inconvenient for me.
"I am glad to help reduce my plastic footprint"
That says it all right there. Sigh.....
"Now let’s ban those other single use plastic thingees".
LOL That would work out well for the millions of plastic syringes used every day by diabetics, and every aspect of the medical field that uses untold amounts of plastic based products every minute of every day. For example: "Hospital patients in the United States generate about 33.8 pounds of waste each day, which leads to about 6 million tons of waste annually". That is just inpatients. As I said the rest of the medical field creates a "plastic footprint" the size of a small planet. Heck the booster of the week has added how many millions of plastic syringes? LOL. And no it is not all recycled not by a longshot.
As far as convenient I agree it's not- for many. PLUS here you go, the traveling to dispose of the plastic film type products does what?? You got it -increases one's big ol' carbon footprint! LMAO. Lets save the environment at the expense of the environment. Classic. LOL
The latest on the bag law enacted by governor hair plugs . Not exactly working out the way he planned .
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/01/25/new-jersey-plastic-bag-ban-study/72354533007/
@97XBAM
I'll admit that this plastic bag ban was not well thought out, but at least the intention was honorable. Unlike when governor 'whale on the beach' shut down the GWB and got away with it.
only one truth No surprise there. But at least it made some people "feel good" about helping the environment when this was introduced What a farce..... LOL
I have a large family and buy a lot in one trip. The amount of bags I have to bring is ridiculous. Because many items are heavy the bags often break, so I go through a lot of bags. The whole system is very wasteful.
I also have dogs so we end up buying traditional plastic shopping bags (big dogs, big poops, big bags) off of Amazon so I’m still using and now buying new plastic bags. I would’ve recycled the ones from the stores for poop bags. So more waste.
It’s also very unhygienic. I keep a clean house but have pets. So often my reusable bags have some fuzz, hair ect even though I do shake them clean before and after each use. I can’t imagine what’s on some other people’s bags and I don’t want to! These are going in the stores and being dragged all over the communal counters. Gross.
Banning plastic bags isn’t really fixing any issues with waste in my opinion it’s made it worse AND much more inconvenient!
HD Lets not be short sighted. None of the new bags are blowing down the street. None of them need to be recycled or thrown away and now that everyone has a supply of new bags I’m guessing the manufacture of all bags will go way down.
People have accumulated so many of the reusable (made with plastic) bags they *are* throwing them away, Roy. The creators of this law are the ones that are shortsighted.
Roywhite, you make a good point concerning the plastic bags but banning paper bags too was simply a stupid idea by Trenton.
BC https://www.amazon.com/Reusable-Grocery-Shopping-Bags-Pack/dp/B081SLGVK7/ref=sr_1_5_pp?keywords=reusable%2Bgrocery%2Bbags&qid=1706275016&sr=8-5&th=1
Great bags - stand up strong easy easy to pack and carry - and reuse
$28 for 3????
The case of 1000 plastic one I bought 2 years ago will probably last me till this summer.
apples and oranges.............have used these about 2 years now and they are just fine as are the ones the hubster has................nothing to throu away
In the years leading up to the law...I was a "hybrid bag guy". I brought a few reusable bags each trip, and then took plastic ones for whatever didn't fit. This allowed me to not waste (the reusable ones generally hold more too), but also gave me a few plastic bags to use for cat litter, and other random garbage bags along the way.
But now...well...it's just annoying. And if I forget the bags, I just throw the items back in the cart and then into the car. But politicians often don't think of the unintended consequences of their actions. That's for sure.
The only winners of this ridiculousness are the stores. The combination of bag sale income and not having to purchase bags to give out for free is quite profitable for them. As usual the "little guy" always gets screwed.
I always stored the evil plastic bags in this cute little ceramic tissue box holder. Now the beautiful reusable bags lay around my house and the back of my car looking like piles of garbage. Thanks.
JrzyGirl88 The stupid law turned everyone in the state into bag ladies . I went into the Dollar Tree in Washington recently and all their baskets were gone - taken by people who didn't remember to be bag ladies . Hopefully the next governor will do away with this stupid law that punishes everybody for the actions of a few litterbugs .
I just wonder how much theft occurs because people put items in their bags while shopping, then neglect to pull item out and ring it up at self checkout.
Nancy I wholeheartily agree that, as a society, we should try to reduce our use of plastics. However, the plastic bag ban was a rather poor attempt at resolving this issue. When the average shopper leaves the grocery store the amount of plastic packaging they have totally overwhelms the plastic bags they might use. Think about it….milk, juice, laundry detergent, soda and many other products are in heavy plastic containers. A quick internet search indicates that an average laundry detergent container has as much plastic as up to 20 shopping bags. And a milk container has as much plastic as 10 bags. So, the plastic bag ban not only inconveniences everyone, but it results in a rather small decrease in plastic used.
FarmerJake I have to disagree. I’ve been using my own bags for over 20+ years. I went to Staples in PA recently and bought one small thing and they put it in a bag. I took it out of the bag and carried it to my car. I drove home with it on my car seat and then carried it into my home. The bag would’ve gone in the garbage and it was absolutely unnecessary. It has become such a habit to put things in a bag that we forget that we often don’t need one.
I keep my bags in the car and bring them when I go into a store where I think I’ll need one. It takes no effort and saves thousands of plastic bags going into landfills where they will sit for hundreds of years.
I care about the planet I live on and I feel responsible for the people who will swim in the oceans and grow food from the land long after I’m gone. I try every day to find new ways to be more environmentally conscious and I support companies that make an effort to do the same.
Res2 I used SR paper and plastic, then reused for refuse and felt really bad about it. But rarely used a plastic garbage bag for over 30 years.
Now I pay $1.50 a week for bags, recyle them the following week, that's the SR process. I tried to recyle at local stands, but no one wants free one-time used bags.
And now I buy earth-friendly garbage bags.
So, spend more, feel better, system not perfect, but I am more earth-friendly for a small price.
Kary I've got no strong opinion pro or con regarding the bag ban. On one hand, we made considerable effort to use our own reusable bags long before the ban. On the other hand, I'm fully aware that the net effect on the environment is minimal. But I'm fine with that. A tiny difference is better than no difference, and sometimes doing a small thing on a regular basis will keep it front of mind so you'll be more attuned to look for opportunities to do bigger things.
Be that as it may, I'm actually posting to ask:
Does anyone here use Weis home delivery?
I assume they use their bags, and add the charge to your final total. If that's the case, do they do a good job of packing the bags efficiently? That is, do they keep the bags to a reasonable number? Or do you end up paying for 8 bags when 5 would have been enough? Also, can I swap them back when my next delivery comes, or do I just keep accumulating more and more and more bags?
Been thinking recently it would really make my weekend a lot smoother if I went with delivery. Hoping someone can relate some first-hand experience.
Monty Monty, I use SR, pickup since out of delivery range. What I noticed since 2020 is that the pickers are pretty good. Might have less bad fruit n vege picks than if I did it. In three years, can count on one hand how many misses. The only other issue is sometimes when something is not available, they just pass and don't offer alternatives or only offer alternatives I would never accept. But, rather a miss than a wrong item.
I still shop local stands and such but don't see me going into a store. Except for the social aspect and impulse shopping fun, not much in it for me excpet a time suck.
Too little profit, why waste the time.
In pickup you pay $1.50 for all the bags you want which you can bring back to recycle, but they offer no rebate. Hey, I can swing $1.50.
I do curbside a lot too. Part don't need the indoors, part it's just easier. Subshack still does it, Panera stopped. Momma's excels at it. Go figure but I go where the curbside is. For delivery, oh my --- Dominoes has it down. Panera pretty good too. They may outsource to something like Deal-dash, but transparent to me. In three years, just one failure.
I continually amazed how some shops leveraged covid to make their offer better, others push back and have diminished offers now. Either move forward or die. Maria Bonita is a great example of how they leveraged their extra parking into outside dining and now both outside and inside have more business. They seem to be booming and the outside accomodations offer nice rural views across 46. I like it.
Thanks to covid, shopping and getting food, has never been better !!!
EVV A quick run to PA used to solve this problem, now you need to go to Delaware to get your bags like a free American.
"A quick run to PA used to solve this problem, now you need to go to Delaware to get your bags like a free American".
"Free American"??? LOL! Oh poor you, your "bag rights" have been infringed upon. Your criterion for freedom is in bad need of adjustment.
Behave, you silly peasant, or you'll loose your "bag rights"!
It's illegal to supply plastic bags in a store, but perfectly fine to sell them.
Pyc And to sell the ones that clog up the landfills even more than the ones previously distributed for free.
Hey now...those new bags are made of some% recycled material, and have "green" marketing - they must be good for the earth in those landfills!
Meanwhile, just read an article that private jet use has increased 20% in the US since 2020. But decreasing our footprint on the planet is definitely the average citizen's task ;)
So if probably not everyone listens to the same new stations that I do but I already knew when I went to ShopRite this week and had to put food back it's at an all-time high and they're saying we will never see these prices come down and that we have to live with this that's unrealistic and disgusting when we do have to bring our own bags bag our own items because there are less cashiers because they want that high minimum wage so explain to me why the food cost keeps going up up when we're back in our own food buying our own bags it's so wrong what's happening to the American people we're so screwed!
Talk with the corporations: “According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute, corporate profits accounted for 54 percent of food price increases between 2020 and 2021. For the four decades prior, only 11 percent was attributed to corporate profits, the rest to the cost of labor.
$7.25/hr? Minimum wage in NJ is now $15.13/hr. An amount which is unsustainable for most small businesses. Therefore, Big Corporate will be your only choice. Enjoy!
The poster said she thought our minimum wage was too high, ie she would prefer it to go back to the federal poverty wage.
What mom and pop grocery store do you go to Calico?
There are a decent amount of small non-corporate food markets that don't seem like they'll disappear anytime soon, like Donaldsons, Races, Frutimex in town, Black River gen store - though shoppers don't usually have enough volume to need a dedicated bagger, just a cashier.
Illo, if big business can make it with current minimum wage and small business cannot, then small business should go away. Better for the people, the companies, and the economy.
$7.50 X2000 (the average number of working hours a year= $ 15,000 a year-- Is that workable?? $15 per hour -- $30,000 a year --- enough to feed 1,2,3,4 family members?
Want to reduce it?
I'm not informed enough to know if the small food markets I named are unsustainable with the current NJ minimum wage, but my point was they have not closed up shop yet - how do you know they cannot make it?
If small businesses install "self-checkout" registers, then they may "compete" with big stores... what's next? self-shelf-stocking isles, self-warehouse isles, self-receiving area, self---- you get the idea!?
Essentially, self-checkout registers "force" the customers to do a job of store's personnel without a pay or any "appropriate" discount.
At least "pick-your-own" prices on some farms are lower than prices for the same product(s) on farm's stand/store.
self, self, self....
Outdoors Women - see if you qualify for any assistance- Hackettstown Events has a SNAP information listed taking place Wednesday March 1 at the Hackettstown Library.
eapos Small businesses are going to get crushed by this new min wage. Not just here but everywhere. Instead of thinking with your heart and feeding into all the media drama, think with your head for a change. If the labor cost (min wage) goes up any store (big or small) will have no choice but to raise prices. Everyone will be paying more so all you are really doing is just moving the poverty line. If you are making $15K a year and have to spend $15K on expenses, it is the same as making $30k and spending $30k on expenses. Honestly the people it hurts the most are the the ones that already make a salary of say $60-$150k and they don't get a raise. The don't make more money but they are going to have to spend more. It is a way that they can make the middle class more "middle".
And the difference between the big and little store is that the big store has room to absorb the rate fluctuation where the little store does not. Big stores can absorb this labor fluctuation until the little store has to close. Then the big store will make it's profit on volume. And this is why little stores will have to close and you will be shopping at big box stores in the near future. Then the big stores will cut workers hours and we will be right back to this same conversation.
Ok I am now of my soap box... thank you for your time!
The Federal minimum wage has been increased 23 times since 1938. From '38 until the late '70s, it was increased pretty regularly; sometimes yearly, sometimes every 3rd or 5th year. This coming July, it will have been *15 years* since the last increase. I'm feeling pretty confident can survive it.
Monty, you may be right. Skipper, you may be wrong.
Any business person that has a direct line from cost to price is boring, if not downright uncompetitive. I produced a product costing $500 and selling for $1,000. To double the capacity, you paid me another $800 and my cost was 17-cents.
I priced to beat the competition and meet customer expectations for a good deal, not stupid cost-plus pricing where every dollar of cost equals the same percentage return. That's a true story for a product every small business uses today, still.
Point is while labor costs can, and usually do, affect prices, the affect is NOT a direct line. Price stickiness says that retailers will do anything before they raise price. Especially in highly competitive markets. It's not direct, it's not immediate.
Sometimes, like this inflation, it can get downright emotional where no one has raised prices for awhile, and suddenly everyone is doing it for the mere reasons that everyone is doing it and someone said there's inflation (whether the small business is affected or not).
Monty is right: we have raised the minumum wage many times and it has not killed us yet; we can't even see higher prices many times after we did it. Skipper is right too, raising rates will probably raise some prices. I contend some are valid, some are just because the owner needed an excuse to make more money.
What Skipper does not add is that folks getting the higher wages will spend more too. Generally, minimum wage earners spend it all. And fast, they cannot wait since it's survival. So the money churns fast, spurring the economy, can cause extra competition and lower prices.
Not to mention the ugly truth about minimum wage: these folks are most often on welfare and SNAP meaning the taxpayer is paying their salary so McDonalds can pay minimum wage to have a low cost burger that the taxpayer subsidized the price on. McDonalds and Walmart even have SNAP schools to teach employees how to get the money they are unwilling to pay so the taxpayers have to pick up the tab and give extra money to people working 40 hours a week at or below the poverty line.
When does that make cents?
New bag law
Pros: handles don't break as easily or at all, bottoms don't rip and spill groceries all over, easy to open, can hold more so less trips back and forth when bringing them inside and less red rings around my arms, wider bottoms in bag provide more room for awkward shapes like meat so less leakage\mess
Cons: yet another reminder of getting older every time I forget one, cashiers that scan faster than you can bag, no compact way to store them (like the plastic bag holder), lack of baskets when making small shopping trips, HUGE increase in theft
Article in Forbes about reusable bags https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickgleason/2024/01/22/new-jersey-bag-ban-followed-by-increased-use-of-plastic/amp/
kt babbit,
you missed another "calculation" - $30 increase on any product hits harder a low-earner (let's say $30K/Y) than the one who earns, let's say, $150K/Y.
The former sees a 0.1 percent increase, the latter - 0.02 percent (which is five times less).
SNAP, welfare and the like, decrease usable money by increasing spendings (extra wages for "social" workers, more communication expenses, utility expenses, commuting, RE, etc.) A government could govern some prices/costs.
pyc, I would agree that any price increase, especially on essential items, affects the poor more than the rich. However, just not sure what you are saying about SNAP, TANF, etc. Of course, there are adminstrative fees. Looks like a 1 to 10% hit depending on the program. So what? It costs more not to do the programs and under 10% seems like pretty good management.
I'm a free market guy, whenever possible, with as little Federal and State control and mandates as possible on everything. Even then, I do support a fair amount of oversight and control. I also do not support government control on prices or costs, although in rare cases like public utilities, I relent. Not sure what you are getting at there.
I think you missed my point on SNAP. Given that the minimum wage can put full time families under the poverty level, companies that pay these poverty wages are benefitted by our welfare-tax-dollars to retain their lower, and artifical, pricing. That's just a$$ backwards economics where companies lobby for both lower minimum wages AND more welfare to support their full time workers and lower prices. Like every $3 Big Mac really is priced at 3.50 when you add in the SNAP payments to workers.
My bottom line though was that the concept of a direct line from cost to price is ridiculous, and while it does happen, there is no absolute guarantee that it will. I personally have not passed on higher costs immediatley, if at all, many times. Anyone in business who steadfastly maintains a cost-plus pricing model will lose to competition.
Minimum wage is meant to be the lowest wage for the lowest level skill set and qualifications. Jobs paying minimum wage are not meant to support a family and are generally meant for part time positions. Thus, if you want to earn more and support a family, you need to acquire a higher level of skill sets.
JohhnyH Actually:
"The purpose of the minimum wage was to stabilize the post-depression economy and protect the workers in the labor force. The minimum wage was designed to create a minimum standard of living to protect the health and well-being of employees."
$15/hr is no longer a valid target. It's $20/hr+. If minimum wage had kept up with inflation and production, we wouldn't have people living in poverty while working full-time.
https://cepr.net/this-is-what-minimum-wage-would-be-if-it-kept-pace-with-productivity/
Minimum wage in NJ was $5 over 30 years ago. Until 2024, PA min wage was 7.25. Are you really thinking that prices of goods (eg your fast food burger) stayed that stagnant for 30 years?
The federal minimum wage was $5.15 in 1997. It's 7.25 today. That is criminal and the direct result of lobbying by corporations to suppress wages and the brainwashing of the voters to accept it.
And if you're going to point to inflation due to wage increases, that's another fallacy:
https://www.epi.org/blog/inflation-minimum-wages-and-profits-protecting-low-wage-workers-from-inflation-means-raising-the-minimum-wage/
At the very bottom of the article:
"The lesson of this figure is clear: If we’re going to start looking at income sources that need to be restrained to keep inflation in check, we should look to corporate profits, not the wages of America’s lowest-paid workers."
emaxxman +1 greg!
Emaxx: it tends to work the other way, inflation drives wages up as employers compete for takent and workers for higher pay. Better yet, more effect for lower paid younger workers; the percentage increase per dollar is better there.
Point is; hope you youngsters got your new higher paying job. Windows closing. My son just nailed same pay for 50% of the hours. Good references, resume, but timing was perfect.
Fact is full time should never put you in poverty requiring tax payer supported welfare. I mean how asinine is it to work full time so you can be on welfare. And the Big Mac doesn’t need to raise it’s price to cover that gap? That’s the return to the taxpayer. Crazy.
If you are beyond your first job as a kid...and past 6 months at that... so say a 16 year old...first job... if you are making minimum wage still - you aren't trying to better yourself.
It is not for anyone who has been working 1+ years.
It is NOT for anyone who isn't a clueless skill-less child.
And certainly *NOT* for someone who has their own child, expects to support their own place to live, nor an excuse to live off the backs of the work of their neighbors.
Anyone with half a brain can learn how WORK works in a few months...and make themselves more valuable in any # of ways to increase their worth to an employer.
FYI: this is not politics --- it's just math.
Josh, you certainly have a point, you may be right. However, IMO, that still does not make it right to pay a full-time wage that does not bring you to the poverty level. That’s just not fair, not American. It’s a form of slavery. And it’s prevalent enough that McDonald’s, Walmart, and others have resources dedicated to helping their workers claim welfare. Yeah, they actually pay people to teach their people how to grab welfare, funded by the taxpayer, so they can pay less.
Your lament is that they deserve what they get and should do better. Your support is lower-age workers don’t need to support a household. As more and younger folk are forced to have a family by new laws, this will just get worse, not better.
While numbers of who’s working support your opinion, fact is there are old and young alike supporting a household, that are in these jobs. Many work multiple part-time jobs to make full time. Are you so righteous that you can judge why there are there? Are you so judgemental as to feel it's their fault for not doing better? I am two generations back, my wife, one from immigration. We remember family members taking low paying jobs to support the family. And yes, we were smart, we joined the Union, but it was a fight, and a fight with some violence.
Is it fair for them to earn a wage that is 40% that of 1979 when adjusted for inflation? A minimum wage that ranks us 17th against 40 developed nations. I think we can do better, and be fair about it.
Yes, we are only talking about 1M people, many young. But the point remains: if you work full time for McDonalds, and because you work full time for McDonalds, you are below the poverty level so taxpayers give you welfare dollars while McDonald’s reaps the financial benefits to be able to lower it’s price of Big Macs below the actual cost that’s being supported by welfare, by the taxpayers, for full time McDonald’s workers earning an unlivable wage for full time work.
IOW --- if McDonald’s paid a living wage, taxpayers could save on welfare while the Big Mac price would rise to its fair level. I support that. It’s just fair Josh.
Here’s a great piece describing the numbers: https://www.zippia.com/advice/minimum-wage-statistics/
None of what you just said was right... I'm just too tired to dissect it and respond now.
And I'm not upset at that- because as I am aware- my response won't change anything.
Anyone posting a long argument like yours is simply disregarding the simple facts-
Lowest pay for lowest job. Period. <--can't be logically argued.
Want more than minimum pay= well, why can't you do more than minimum worth?
Minimum work / worth is not something that should be in a conversation past a new young child who is NOT out on their own, not paying to support themselves or a family.
Josh,
First, my opinions are not wrong. Neither are yours.
My FACTS are spot on.
Long does not make wrong unless you are a ding-dong goes the song.....
Of course lowest pay for lowest job. No duh. You can raise minimum wage and still acheive that.
But I get it. You believe that a full time worker can be paid unlivable wages if the job is not special enough for you and it's the workers fault. If you are just a manual laborer, you don't deserve to be above poverty and must ask for taxpayer support. That's our farm workers, a lot of construction guys, a lot of road workers, and everyone inside a Wallmart, McDonalds, Home Depot ----- let them all work full time and be on Food Stamps so we can pay them instead of Walmart, McDonalds, and Home Deport paying them a fair day's wage for a fair day's pay as minimum wage was intended.
I believe the minimum wage should be a livable wage that is at or above the poverty level and does not require taxpayer support via welfare to be added. Succinct enough?
As we move ever onward into an economy that is more service-oriented, this issue will just increase.
Education, experience, expertise = better paying jobs, and the education is free. Use it.
babbit, that's probably a workable goal, especially since current minimum wage jobs will probably be eliminated within the next generation. Kids, better get yourself a skill that a robot or 12-year old Indonesian kid is unable to do.
You got that right ianimal.
I suggest solar. The buildout will be a lifetime. You can choose residential, commercial, or utility. You can install, design, market, sell, manage, or engineer. All pretty clean and safe. Work outdoors or in. Probably a life long career.
But yes, if it’s money you want, education is still your best bet for achievement. Statistically speaking. And don’t work for Josh, he does not pay well. You can do better
Actually you couldn't be more wrong.
Education does NOT = money. Skill does. Regardless of field.
Pay well- means what's your worth? It's that simple.
Oh, Josh.
Learning a skill. How is that not education?( an apprentice learning from a craftsman).
Education does = money.
Education=skill=$
Plenty of people are skilled without education.
Plenty of people are educated without skill.
Those that understand this...
Josh,
it's just statistics and the law of averages.
Sure, many a non-educated person does extremely well without an advanced degree.
Likewise, there's many a failed well-educate person out there.
But the statistics are clear that you lower your risk of failure and increase your chances for a higher salary with each degree you acheive. I did not look at technical schools but gather they are in the mix too with better pay for each technical level you achieve in school.
Just math my friend, no magic here. https://www.bankrate.com/loans/student-loans/average-college-graduate-salary/#level
Likewise, and no magic here either --- if you live in NJ, chances are you make more. Too bad about the spending more part, but there it is. We are like number three right now: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_income
Now a ban on plastic water bottles , the idiocy never ends .
https://thelakewoodscoop.com/news/new-jersey-assemblyman-considering-legislation-to-ban-plastic-bottles/
Yet all the convenience stores and fast food chains still use plastic cups? Makes perfect sense.
Not to mention all the plastic that comes from grocery stores. Water, soda, food containers, produce plastic bags, plastic wrap around produce an meat, etc etc etc\
Just more do-nothing feel-good virtue-signaling NONSENSE.
I encourage you to take a moment to learn more about plastic waste and its impact on our environment. A great place to start would be a quick search for 'microplastics brain Harvard' or 'ocean plastic'—the images alone can be eye-opening.
After doing some research, I hope you'll consider how small changes, like reusing bags or carrying a reusable water bottle, can make a big difference. These small steps not only reduce our plastic consumption but also help protect the planet for future generations who deserve to enjoy a cleaner ocean.
The choice is yours, but I believe that with a little more awareness and thoughtfulness, we can all contribute to a better future.
I couldn't agree more about the plastic waste and microplastics in our oceans. However It's laughable to think that a bottle ban in tiny little New Jersey would amount to any real impact. The fact is: "according to current research, the countries contributing the most to plastic pollution in the ocean are primarily in Asia, with the Philippines identified as the top contributor, followed by India, Malaysia, China, and Indonesia; this is largely due to inadequate waste management systems in these regions, which lead to significant amounts of plastic entering waterways and eventually reaching the oceans."
Greg knows.
If the politicians ACTUALLY want to "do something", they'd have to enact an outright ban on all plastics in food and consumer industries.
So ironic, fast food cups used to be waxed paper, but we were "killing all the trees" so they went to plastic. Now plastic is "killing the oceans". What's next? "F the cup, pour it in my hand for a dime" (movie reference)
I say, go back to waxed paper cups, and plastic straws because paper straws are virtually worthless. It's like wearing cardboard rain boots.
I don't eat fast food often and I would never pay $3.00 for a cup of soda... but I'm pretty sure that fast food drink cups are back to cardboard, except for maybe the extra jumbo size.
Remember back in the 60's if you bought beer to go after 10pm it was in a cardboard container !
Bob K. Absolutely nobody thinks banning plastic bottles in NJ will fix the plastic problem in the world. In fact, no one thinks the problem would be solved if the whole US banned them. But the fact that you can't do everything doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't do something.
"Now a ban on plastic water bottles , the idiocy never ends ."
If he's actually going to go by the Mass. law, then only the State can't buy plastic bottled goods. Says nothing about consumers.
Whip I’ve been the the plastic industry for 21 years. Most of it cannot be recycled as it’s too dirty (post consumer). The real solution is to BURY it. Like everything else we throw in landfills, all of the post-consumer bags, cups, straws, just like your old plastic calculator, should thrown in the trash and sent to the landfill. Plastics today have a worse reputation than toxic waste and it’s a bit ridiculous. Get caught littering? $10,000 fine. Problem solved.
Greg is 100% correct. Until 2017 we were sending all of our post-consumer “recycling” to China and India. They took possession and promptly threw it all in the ocean. We no longer export our plastic trash to them but they have no problem continuing to throw their own plastics in the ocean. Which, of course, breaks down into micro plastic and is consumed by fish. We then eat those fish.
Bury the plastic. The liners in those landfills, if made correctly and to a high standard, will not leach into soil.
+1 consigliere. Not ideal of course, but if we're going to keep using it....
If they don't ban all plastic (outside of medical purposes)...then it's pretty useless.
Stopping one segment out of many many segments of plastic...is pretty useless.
The new grocery bags are WAAAAY worse than the old ones. They sell countless of them.... profit from them....and tons of them are thrown out..
Plastic recycling is a scam.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJnJ8mK3Q3g&pp=ygUOcmVjeWNsaW5nIHNjYW0%3D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwppgbZwrpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LELvVUIz5pY
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