Plastic bags are on the way out at Fred Meyer.
Kroger Co., Fred Meyer’s parent company and the nation’s largest grocery chain, said this week it will begin the process of phasing out plastic bags. The goal is to go plastic-bag free at all of its nearly 2,800 stores by 2025.
“We listen very closely to our customers and our communities, and we agree with their growing concerns,” said Mike Donnelly, Kroger’s chief operating officer.
Kroger Co. will start Thursday at its QFC stores in and around Seattle, with the goal of using no plastic bags at those stores at some point next year.
Fred Meyer’s corporate spokesman couldn’t immediately be reached about the timeline in Yakima.
Kroger orders about 6 billion bags each year for its stores in 35 states and the District of Columbia, which cater to almost 9 million people daily through two dozen different grocery chains.
The grocer, based in Cincinnati, is seeking customer feedback and will work with outside groups throughout the transition to reusable bags. Customers will be able to buy reusable bags at its stores for $1 to $2 each. While brown paper bags will also be available for free, Kroger says its goal is to fully transition to reusable bags.
A small selection of shoppers contacted at Fred Meyer in Yakima on Thursday were supportive, with reservations.
Allisha Falk, a 31-year-old member of the Army National Guard, said she tries to be as eco-conscious as she can, using reusable bags and trying to recycle the bags that she does take home.
However, she thinks the corporate trend toward waste reduction is a marketing ploy to make consumers feel good.
“I think it’s a great idea, but it’s not sustainable, unfortunately,” Falk said. “Starbucks stops using plastic straws, but there’s still the plastic cup. We can only impact so much, and I think people feel good about it and will support those businesses more or less because they’re being tricked to believe so.”
Bruce Whitmore, a 71-year-old retired teacher in Yakima, thinks the trend isn’t enough to help the environment.
Whitmore said he thinks that while some businesses may move toward reusable bags, consumers will just go to places that don’t use them so they won’t have to buy bags.
“The bottom line is our consumer culture has to change. It has to be the world,” Whitmore said. “I’m appalled at the garbage in our waterways. Legislation has to be put in place to get the plastic bag problem under control.”
Ray Bell, 77, said the changes remind him of when he was young and paper bags and glass bottles were the norm.
“I was never a fan of plastic anyway. It’s such a pain, and it’s hard on the environment. I don’t like the way they open and close, and it’s flimsy,” Bell said. “I’m of the paper bag era. There was no such thing as plastic bags or bottles.”
