Facts on Sustainability

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Paper or Plastic? Your Choice by the Numbers…

  • Reduced Emissions
    Manufacturing plastic grocery bags requires significantly less energy when compared to paper bags, resulting in fewer greenhouse emissions.1
  • Lower Transport/Storage Costs
    It is estimated that one truck of plastic bags can deliver the same number and capacity as seven trucks of paper bags. Accordingly, plastic bags require significantly less energy to transport than paper bags, and from a comparative standpoint, result in significantly reduced emissions.1
  • Facts Sustainability

    Energy Conservation and Efficiency

  • Less Energy to Recycle
    Recycling a pound of plastic requires less than 10% of the energy it takes to recycle a pound of paper.2
  • Less Landfill Space
    Plastic Bags require less than 1/6 the space of paper bags, when properly disposed in landfills.1
  • Resource Efficient
    It is estimated that the production of plastic bags requires about 1/20th the water needed to make paper bags.1
  • Resource Conservation
    It was estimated that 10 billion paper grocery bags are consumed in the U.S. each year, requiring material derived from 14 million trees.3

References:

  1. Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI)
  2. National Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
  3. National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA)