This Supermarket Is Shaming People Who Don’t Bring Reusable Bags, And This Is Not Okay

Canada’s East West Market has been promoting the switch from single-use plastic to reusable bags for years as part of their #JoinTheEarthMovement. But as of June 6th, they’ve decided to push their movement one step further than simply charging customers 5 cents per plastic bag. Instead, not only does a customer have to pay for their single-use plastic, but they’ll also be shamed for not bringing their reusable tote.

Each single-use plastic bag distributed by East West Market now flaunts a hilarious fake ad for products like “Wart Ointment” and faux businesses like “The Colon Co-Op” and “Into The Weird Adult Emporium.”

“Over 1 million plastic bags are used every minute, most of which are filled once, then discarded. So, we redesigned our bags to stop people from taking them, helping customers remember a reusable bag and thing twice about single-use plastic,” the Market shared in a promotional Facebook video. Each plastic bag also reads in fine print, “Avoid the shame. Bring a reusable bag.”

The hope is that customers will want to avoid the sheer embarrassment of carrying around a bag from The Colon Co-Op and therefore, will always remember their reusable bag. However, East West Market shoppers are not thrilled with the new campaign.

Some people are totally not about East West Market’s attempt to humiliate their customers. Why risk being embarrassed for not bringing a reusable bag if you could simply shop somewhere else?

“Humiliation toward the mentally challenged that don’t always understand everything fully to the capabilities of others [is not okay],” one concerned customer wrote. She added that children may also be victimized by East West Market’s new marketing ploy.

Another Facebook user pointed out how the supermarket uses plastic for packaging, and is being hypocritical for shaming customers for the same.

She also noted that the “Colon Care” bag is offensive to those who live with colostomy bags.

Isn’t it a bit counterintuitive that East West Market went out of their way to produce these plastic bags when they could have stopped using them altogether? Hm…

Producing single-use plastic to tell people to stop using single-use plastic is a bit bonkers, in our opinion. We agree.

Many others admit that these new bags are all the more reason why they’d choose to leave their reusable totes at home. They’re hilarious.

Shoot. That’s not the point.

They’re kind of cool, I’d actually want one

— Fräulein Ingeborg 🇲🇱🇬🇱 (@Zalagardera) June 11, 2019

Guys! No!

...and the idea is that they become collectible. I want one too.

— Μπαρμπανικολής (@CCCYP) June 11, 2019

East West Market’s plan could actually backfire immensely. People might go out of their way to seek these bags out, therefore causing an increase in plastic bag usage.

Jo, you’re not supposed to love it. Although… maybe you are? We’re confused.

They’re not really helping the environment if they’re continuing to produce single-use plastic, are they? *Sigh*

We can understand what they were trying to do. But we’re just not sure if they’re actually doing the right thing.

Obviously, this marketing stint is a double-edged sword. People are either offended or want one for themselves.

i feel guilty for wanting one

— Tullamore & North Offaly CoderDojo ☯️ (@TullamoreDojo) June 11, 2019

Honestly, this Twitter user is right. Just stop making single-use plastic bags altogether. That’s really the only way to stop people from using them.

Don't offer plastic bags if you don't want people using them. Simple. People will get used to it eventually. Honestly this goes for all shops... stop offering ANY plastic bags at all. Not hard. There's plenty of alternatives available.

— ɴɪᴋᴋɪ🫰 ₦ɆØ ₲Ø₮ ₥Ɏ ฿₳₵₭ 💚 (@nymeriaaa__) June 11, 2019

What are your thoughts about East West Market’s plastic bag ploy? To us, it seems like there’s a simpler solution to the single-use plastic pandemic. Just ditch it entirely.