¿What´s better? ¿Paper or plastic bags?

Question

When I buy bread at my local bakery, the lady asks what kind of bag do I want....¿paper or plastic?

I decided to take my own cloth bag when shopping for bread

But I still wonder.....What´s better for the enviroment paper or plastic bags?

Answer 1

The most environmentally friendly is to bring your own reusable bag (i.e. canvas bag).

If you don't, then it depends.

Paper bags require more energy to produce and trees to be cut down, but are easily recyclable.

Plastic bags require less energy to produce, but are not recyclable. They are reusable for other applications, but only if your area has a specific plastic grocery bag recycling program (every retail store in California is now required by law to have one, for example).

So from most to least environmentally friendly:

1) Bring canvas bag(s)
2) Plastic if there's a specific recycling program
3) Paper
4) Plastic if there's no recycling program

Answer 2

Best answer for the environment is to reuse bags. Bring your own bags (usually cloth - they are stronger and last longer), or even reuse your old paper or plastic ones. Some grocery stores will even give you a few cents rebate for each bag you reuse.

Although plastic bags require less energy and resources to make than paper bags, they are made of petroleum products (finite resource), are not easily biodegradable, and are rarely recycled (fill up landfills). However, paper is made from a renewable resource (trees, and recycled paper), and is much more easily recycled (higher recycling rate than plastic).

Myself, I only purchase what I can carry out in my backpack and occasionally in other bags I carry (like a few plastic ones, or a cloth thermal bag). Thankfully, I don't get plastic bags very often, but I do like to get them on occasion as I reuse them as trash bags (line my home trash cans), so I don't have to buy special trash bags. back when I was a kid in school, paper was better as I could cover books, use it for craft paper, etc.

Answer 3

What is best for the environment is re-usable mesh bags. As you pointed out, both paper and plastic have their drawbacks. A bag you can use over and over again works much better. In fact, there are some grocery stores that charge 3 cents a bag just to get you to bring your own re-usables. -Dio

Answer 4

If it's any help, they don't have to cut down trees to make plastic bags, and all paper bags are not made from re-cycled materials.
As far as bread goes, when storing in plastic, the bread can get soggy, unless the plastic bag is made specifically for bread, and in that case it would be full of vent holes.

Answer 5

Paper is the least evil.

Paper is biodegradable, and recyclable, but only a few do that; you also need to cut trees to get pulp for the paper.

Plastic bags are non biodegradable. They pose garbage problems.

Your cloth bag would be the best if you ask me. You could reuse them many times, not adding any rubbish in the process. None of those disposable kinds, they add rubbish.

Answer 6

The source of the paper would be significant. Paper can be composted as well as recycled, of course.

I actually think they're both bad and that you should use a cloth bag or none at all. I generally put everything in a rucksack.

Answer 7

Hey, if you bring your own bag, that's the best.

Paper bags can easily be recycled though.

Answer 8

OK the best bag is Hemp (I know all the pot smokers are giggling) but it 's true. Hemp grows quickly and is very much a renewable resource.

Answer 9

paper is better it breaks down but the plastic does not and now they sure don't know what to do about it.

Answer 10

paper.
they get recycled more often.
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