How/Where can I recycle plastic bags?

Question

I have loads and loads of plastic bags that I have gathered over the years from clothes shopping and I don't want to just turf them in the bin. I want to know if there are places or services that can recycle plastic bags.

Thanks

DarkStar

Can I leave plastic bags I get from retail shops like River Island, Burton and Next in these supermarket bag recycle bins?

Answer 1

Hi Darkstar,
I recycle all my plastic bags at my nearest Tesco store, they usually have the bins next to the entrance and you cant mistake it. Yes you can recycle, Next, River Island bags etc in these bins, as they are still classed as plastic bags.
Alternatively, you can always take them to a charity shop as they are always please to accept them as they can re use them. I hope this helps.

Answer 2

There are different types of plastic. Look at the bottom of your soda bottle, there is probably a triangle with a 2 in it. Now look on the bottom of another type of container, like tupperware. The number is different because it is a different formula of plastic. The caps on your soda bottles are even a different type of plastic than the bottle itself! Some municipalities even require that you remove all items not on their list from your recycling bin. This includes those caps and not putting your recycling out in plastic bags. One wrong item could ruin a whole batch of plastic being recycled because of the various melting points. Some grocery stores offer plastic bag recycling bins for customers. It is best to make sure there aren't receipts or other items in the bags before bringing them in. If you aren't sure if your grocery store offers this service, call their customer service desk. Tote bags have also become very popular for grocery shopping. I have a zip-up tote bag that I carry in my purse for when I go somewhere like a book store so I don't need to take a bag. Clothing stores still look at me like I have 2 heads when I say no bag, but I think it will catch up soon enough. The $1 tote bags they sell in the grocery stores are great! We only need 4 for all of our weekly groceries. We have only needed to replace 1 since we first bought them over a year ago. Some stores even offer a discount if you bring your own plastic, paper, or tote bag for your items. They are also a lot easier to carry as the heavier bags won't cut into your hands the way the plastic bags tend to do. We don't know how long it takes for a plastic bag to break down in a land fill, they are still pretty new. Please see the links below for more information and for a product that is a great substitute that I have found recently for regular trash bags. Thanks for doing your part to help the planet!

Answer 3

Your grocery stores should have bins for recycling these. And yes, you can recycle all plastic bags. The best thing to do, is to buy some canvas totes and use them when shopping. This will prevent more plastic going to the landfill and more trees being cut for the use of paper bags. (I have a friend who works in this area and most of the stuff that is meant for recycling just gets dumped anyway; it's to costly to actually reproduce it into somethings reuseable. Recycling bins are set up more to ease peoples minds more than anything else.)

Answer 4

The recycle bins outside supermarkets take any plastic bags not just the ones from their store

Answer 5

put the majority in the recycling bins you sometimes see outside supermarkets. leave some at home though for you to re-use when you go shopping so that you dont accumilate bags as much. you may gather a few extra over time if you dont take enough but it is better than collecting loads and loads over a shorter time.

Answer 6

Most super markets recycle plastic bags nowadays There`s usually a big bin near the entrance saying to put your plastic bags in there

Answer 7

Supermarkets often have large recycling bins for plastic carrier bags. They are usually located near the entrances and shopping trolleys, and look very much like 'wheely' bins.

My local Tesco, Sainsburys and Morrisons all have these facilities.

Answer 8

If I dont have any bags I take them from the recycling bins at Tesco outside the store. I then get points for every bag i re-use and they dont have to be Tesco ones.

Tesco also give Clubcard points for recycling printer cartridges. There are certain types that they cant do though.

Answer 9

The supermarkets have recycling places and the kind of bags you have will be accepted.

But why not re-use them before putting them for recycling? These types of bags are usually really strong and would last a few weekly shops before being fit for the recycling bin!

Reduce, re-use and Recycle.

Answer 10

Tesco will take all kinds of bags from any shop. Just shove them in the recycle bin thats outside most stores.