The "I'm Not A Plastic Bag" Craze Hits New York

Yesterday we mentioned London designer Anya Hindmarch's I'm Not A Plastic Bag was finally arriving at Whole Foods today. The canvas tote was made popular by a combination of things including celebrity and unavailability. Hindmarch told the NY Times “To create awareness you have to create scarcity by producing a limited edition. I hate the idea of making the environment trendy, but you need to make it cool and then it becomes a habit.”

We're all for everyone using reusable bags, but why spend hundreds of dollars on this particular one? That's the going rate on eBay, where we're sure some New Yorkers will be making their rent money later (the retail price is $15). When the bags hit LA last month, LAist and TMZ reported from the front lines. Bags sold out there by 2pm, however here in New York at the Columbus Circle location (with 3,000 bags in stock) they were sold out in 29 minutes. Even in the morning downpour! The Ecorazzi also report that "a fight broke out on line as a woman pushed her way to the front, feeling she should have priority because she works for the NYC schools. Another woman is said to have fainted."

Of course, there are many options for reusable bags that can be obtained without violence: Trader Joe's sells a variety of reusable bags for a few bucks, and even rewards customers who use any reusable bag with a monthly lottery for free groceries. The website Reusable Bags has a ton of great eco-friendly options. And there's always the reactionary "I'm Not A Smug ____" imitation bag.

Whether you stand in line for 3 hours to get the next big "It" bag at Whole Foods or not, keep the facts about plastic bags in mind next time you're buying groceries. Over 380 billion plastic bags are consumed in the U.S. each year, they take about 500 years to degrade and less than 1% reuse them. Get the facts here, and then get your own canvas bag and "just say no" to plastic.

Update: Here's a video of the craziness.

Photos via Ecorazzi, by Melissa Rosenberg.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Carlson in Arts & Entertainment, Food, News on July 18, 2007 12:09 PM

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skygreenleopard

Terrible - pretentious, consumerist, AND crass? I never thought all three would go together - instead, that's all these materialist hippies are these days.

I'm all for the environment. I use a duffel bag to carry things and take a bus - I don't buy this moronic bag and drive a Prius. Since when do people think that driving a Prius can HELP the environment??! Last time I checked, a car that gets 10 mpg more than my Honda Civic still hurts the environment.

Emskilly

Hello everyone, I am the beginning of my new "green" journey. I hope you can help me with some ideas. I currently use plastic bags from groceries for my trash bins...If I switch to cloth reusable bags, what will I use in my trash bins? What do you use?

I hope you will be nicer to me than you were to the people in the article who you hate for their ignorance.

guest

Love this!

http://www.cafepress.com/emandm

guest

It doesn’t really matter where it’s made, or what it’s made out of… The point is, people who like this bag will want to use it and that in itself can reduce the consumption of plastic bags.

The goal wasn’t to diminish child labor or cheap labor in China.

If people like this bag and decide to use it as an alternative to plastic shopping bags, then the message and goal is effective.

People who want this bag know its intended purpose and ultimately it’s a personal choice to stop using plastic or not. The bag itself doesn’t make a difference, it’s the attitude people adopt.

The message is boldly imprinted on the bag so it’s promoting awareness and a 2nd look at things.

Like if you bring it to a supermarket where everyone is packing their stuff in plastic, they might think twice next time.

----BTW, don't be fooled by the price drop of these bags on ebay, there are tons of fakes out there, over half of them are sold from China now. Beware of the lack of pictures, new sellers with little or no feedback!!!

guest

Even better. Get something real and write your own smug phrase with a sharpie: Blank Recycled Bag

guest

I noticed the ebay add person is from danbury CT, surely she is not poor. I've also noticed her ebay rating is 80 percent positive, THAT'S NOT GOOD, beware, beware, danger, danger, bad ebay rating.

aj

At least guest above made $103 from ebay.

aj

Lame lame lame lame LAME.

Whole Foods has sold canvas bags for years. And you wait in line for THIS?!

guest

all of you are siuck, from the iphone people to thebag people, all you line waiting fucks are sick.

guest

The funny thing is, most of the bag's owners would use it as a handbag instead of a grocery bag. So when they go grocery shopping they'll still be using plastic bags for the groceries because they're too afraid to get it dirty. How ironic is that to see someone holding this bag on one shoulder and carrying a plastic bag with groceries in another hand.

And seriously, this whole craze can really show the true character of the people around you. Now you can tell who's your true friend and who isn't!

mb317

if you are actually looking for a nice reusable bag and not something to make a profit on ebay, there's no line at Park Natural Market in Carroll Gardens. they sell cotton grocery totes by minusbags that are really great. they're only $16 and made in the USA, not China. they also have a website-- minusbags.com

guest

so I was on line for HOURS at a Whole Foods Market to get my hands on one of these babies, and finally I got them!

I bought two, so i am selling the other one on ebay if anyone's is interested!

I even have the original receipt to prove it is original!

http://cgi.ebay.com/IM-NOT-A-PLASTIC-BAG-by-Anya-Hindmarch-ORIGINAL-WRAP_W0QQitemZ180140824232QQihZ008QQcategoryZ63852QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

guest

I sold one on eBay for over a hundred bucks. Sweet.

guest

I sold one on eBay for over a hundred bucks. Sweet.

guest

As one of the many "douches" (As # 17 so eloquently describes us) who stood on line to buy the bag yesterday, I don't feel badly at all for the people I'm selling my bags to on eBay to. I get to have these suckers help pay for my tuition. Muahahaha!

I'm sure it's true most people who bought the Anya bag don't care about the environment. But since I am one of those people who always tell the clerks "I don't need a bag I don't need a bag" (only to have them give me a blank stare as they stupidly start bagging my purchases), print documents double-sided, and recycles all my bottles--I don't feel like a hypocrite. F* the haters!

guest

i use these and love them:

http://envirosax.com/pages/products.php?icat=1

guest

ralph nadir?

you mean ali baba? forty thieves?

guest

It takes 500 years for a plastic bag to disintigrate. WOW. Why didn't DaVinci use paper when he went shopping for his week's gnocchi supply?

Who come up with these figures? Ralph Nadir?