Plastic bags are still available at My Butcher Superstore, but manager Barry Flower says he hopes one day soon they’ll be a thing of the past in his business. 

“I don’t like the wastage, all the plastic we throw out. Our bins are full of it,” said Mr Flower. “It’s about time we did something about it- I’ve been saying it for years. The business is looking at producing re-usable bags, which will be available for free, to customers. “We’ve got our own bags coming...they’ll come soon.” 

It’s a cultural shift also being noticed by locally-owned paper and stationery company, Berry Anderson. “Over the past few weeks, we’ve been getting a lot of enquiries from people wanting to know about about our thicker, recyclable plastic bags,” said sales and marketing team member, Taegan Westin.

Pubs and restaurants have also been looking into alternatives for takeaway packaging, looking at products like compostable containers, “particularly since Uber Eats arrived in Ballarat.” Ms Westin says while alternatives are currently more expensive, the pros outweigh the cons. “Compared to what we’re doing for the environment, the cost is not huge.”

Andrea Hurley, owner of Hattie and The Wolf, is trying to avoid plastic altogether. Bags aren’t regularly available to customers, instead using ‘Boomerang Bags’. These are community-made bags from recycled materials, with kits or ready-made bags available at her store. Together with Stacey Gibson and Wendy Aston, the trio have brought the initiative to Ballarat. 

“We wanted an alternative to single-use plastic bags, and no-one else in was doing it in Ballarat yet,” said Ms Hurley. “It’s about starting that conversation [about sustainability].”

Stacey Gibson, of the Healthy Hub, agrees. On top of Boomerang Bags, she also offers takeway bags made of bamboo, due to the much more sustainable practices of producing them, and their cost-effective nature. Not ending there, she also encourages customers to bring in their own coffee cups, and take-away containers. 

“We highly recommend bringing in your own containers [for takeaway purchases]. That’s an even better option,” said Ms Gibson, noting that discounts followed these practices.

The use of alternative materials and products is not just being seen in Ballarat, being a world-wide phenomenon. In fact, Aldi in Spain recently released a media campaign re-using old newspapers as the wrapping on purchased foods instead of bags.

Watch the video here.

Looks like there may be a new use for your old Couriers.