A plastic bag ban has prompted some Dunedin shoppers to walk out of a supermarket’s grounds taking shopping baskets and trolleys with them.
Countdown supermarkets in Dunedin and Mosgiel stopped using single-use plastic carry bags on August 13, responding to concerns about the effect of plastics on the environment.
Responding to a query from the Otago Daily Times, Countdown Dunedin Central store manager Ron Andrew said baskets had been going missing, and his team planned to collect any trolleys and baskets left in the street.
"We’ve seen some baskets go missing this week, which is of course a little disappointing, but we also understand that sometimes behaviour change can be tough."
Mr Andrew said he planned to do reusable bag giveaways in the North Dunedin area to help university students "build their collection".
People who brought back a basket would be given a reusable bag in return, "no questions asked".
Mr Andrew said on the whole his store had had "a great response from customers", most of whom were bringing reusable bags when doing their shopping.
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To be fair what did the supermarket think would happen? some shops put RFID tags on the baskets so the alarm goes off when taken from shop. The banning of the so called one use shopping bag is a total scam and money maker for rubbish bag manufactures and shops to charge more for a bag. I'd not have enough guts to take a basket and I have to question how does it happen? I always use a trolley no matter what I shop for since the bag ban here in Aussie. I then take the trolley to my car and pack my shopping , now not returning the trolley to the collection point. My thoughts are now, if they can't be bothered providing a box or bag for free , I can't be bothered putting the trolley back, so all the coin they make from selling bags will force them to employ extra staff to collect trolleys, I hope others do the same. The supermarkets are not set up like Pac n Save and need to be.