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October 11, 2008 11:09:45 PM CDT

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Whole Foods Sacks Plastic Bags

Posted Jan 23, 08 10:51 AM CST in Business 

(Newser) – After Earth Day on April 22, customers at any of Whole Foods' 270 stores will be taking home their groceries in a paper bag—unless they bring their own bag, reports the Austin American Statesman's Business Blog. The chain, concerned about the environment, is phasing out plastic bags. Experts say it's a bold move, but one that others may follow.

Billions of plastic bags are thrown away every year and restrictions on their use are growing. Whole Foods executives say the chain-wide move has had a trial run since San Francisco banned the bags. “It was paper for many, many years. It’s not really a hardship," said one executive.

Sources Austin American-Statesman, New York Times

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Shoppers filter in and out of the Whole Foods Market on the east side of Boulder, Colo., on Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2007. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)   (Associated Press)
Customers Pam King and her son Rhys, 2, from Pasadena, Calif., shop for organic groceries at the newly opened Whole Foods Market Arroyo Parkway store in Pasadena, Calif. in this file photo. Whole Foods...   (Associated Press)
Brandon Siegel, a clerk at Graul's Market in Annapolis, Md., unloads grocery bags for a customer Monday July 23, 2007. An Annapolis official proposing the toughest-in-the-nation ban on plastic shopping...   (Associated Press)
Davon Johnson bags groceries at a Giant supermarket in Washington on Friday, Jan. 18, 2008. The store has both plastic and paper bags available, and also sells reusable bags in the store. Faced with a...   (Associated Press)
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