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Eco-Awareness Is In The (Reusable) Bag

From cheap to designer, totes help eliminate the plastic glut

By Sarah Seltzer,  Newser User

Posted May 7, 2007 10:57 AM CDT
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(Newser) – Whether it's a designer tote bag with a three-figure price tag or a $5 carryall from the convenience store, Americans are slowly catching on to the European trend of answering the eternal question "paper or plastic" with "neither." Tote bags eliminate environmental stress, proclaim a consumer's eco-friendliness, and can even exude style.

In Europe, the Los Angeles Times says, "designers have seized on the old-style tote bag like stylists going to work on an aging hippie in a beauty salon." But the bring-your-own habit has yet to penetrate buy-in-bulk America—at the moment, 90 percent of purchases go home in plastic.

A doll uses her own pink shopping bag instead of a plastic bag during her shopping in a display setup which is part of Japanese government's campaign against global warming in Tokyo Jan. 18, 2007. The dolls, Japan's answer to Barbie dolls, are being used by Japanese Ministry of the...
A doll uses her own pink shopping bag instead of a plastic bag during her shopping in a display setup which is part of Japanese government's campaign against global warming in Tokyo Jan. 18, 2007. The...   (Associated Press)
Republican presidential hopeful and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani carries a plastic bag containing items he purchased at a Target store in Las Vegas on Wednesday, March 28, 2007. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Republican presidential hopeful and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani carries a plastic bag containing items he purchased at a Target store in Las Vegas on Wednesday, March 28, 2007. (AP Photo/Jae...   (Associated Press)
A supermarket stall assistant loads plastic bags of goods into a trolley next to a poster urging people to bring their own bags Wednesday, April 18, 2007 in Singapore. The city-state's National Environment Agency together with the Singapore Environment Council and major supermarkets Wednesday launched the first Bring Your Own...
A supermarket stall assistant loads plastic bags of goods into a trolley next to a poster urging people to bring their own bags Wednesday, April 18, 2007 in Singapore. The city-state's National Environment...   (Associated Press)
The luxury handbag that is environmentally conscious is set to retail at $495. (Stella McCartney)
The luxury handbag that is environmentally conscious is set to retail at $495. (Stella McCartney)   (LA times)
LIFE FASH-COACH 1 TB
LIFE FASH-COACH 1 TB   (KRT Photos)
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environment • fashion • shopping • environmentalism • consumer • plastic • tote bag • paper bags

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