12 Woolworth stores across Australia to go plastic bag-free from April 4

Some Woolworth stores in Australia will be plastic-free starting Wednesday. Three Woolworths stores in Victoria, Western Australia and New South Wales and two in Queensland will begin to ditch plastic bags, a change that comes after it has been revealed that customers use 3.2 billion plastic bags annually.

Woolworths Queensland State Manager Matthew Franich recognised that the removal of single-use plastic bags is the “right thing to do” for the environment. He added that the decision is a “significant change” for some of its customers.

Franich pointed out that the Woolworths teams have been hard at work to remind local customers about the upcoming change in the recent week. Feedback from the community has been positive so far. The change means shoppers will need to bring their own shopping bags. Those who fail to do so can buy a 99c canvas bag or opt for a 15c thicker and reusable plastic bag.

Woolworths has promised to phase out plastic bags by July 1 this year. Coles has reportedly vowed to do the same. The Daily Mail Australia reports that all other states apart from New South Wales will outlaw single-use bags in the future.

Hastings Co-op is also phasing out single-use plastic bags in its three IGA supermarkets from July 1. The community-owned co-operative will be offering reusable bag options at a minimal cost. “Change has been in the air for some time, and the decision to go plastic bag-free was an easy one - and the right one for our customers and the environment,” Port News reports chief executive officer Allan Gordon as saying.

Gordon also said that they already have a range of sustainability initiatives, citing solar power, cardboard boxes and reverse vending machines. He added that they want to take one step further and work with the community in protecting the local environment.

Meanwhile, shadow minister for the Illawarra Ryan Park said that people of Wollongong and its surroundings would welcome a ban on plastic bags. Some northern suburbs residents, he said, are pushing for a ban, thanks to “generally supportive” region.

“I have met with people, particularly in the northern suburbs, who have taken a proactive approach to this, which is about trying to make sure our waterways have a reduction in littler, but also [that bags] don’t do the damage to the marine life which we’ve seen is a result,” Illawarra Mercury quotes him as saying.