Woolworths’ sneaky new charge has angered Australians
Woolworths will charge customers up to $1.20 for mesh bags to use when purchasing fruits and vegetables, rather than giving away free plastic bags.
Previously, Woolworths supplied plastic bags for customers to use for their products. However, to reduce plastic waste, they encourage customers to bring their own reusable fruit and vegetable bags, or pay for mesh bags instead.
A customer at Woolworths was furious when they noticed the new cost for the bags and shared a photo showing the new cost on reddit.
The photo was taken in Western Australia, where Woolworths is currently testing a ban on single-use plastic bags in some stores by selling a pack of three reusable net bags for 30 cents, discounted from the usual price of $3.50.
The supermarket giant has already banned single-use plastic bags for products in South Australia.
“What the f**k is this bulls**t,” the author captioned the photo shared on Reddit.
Woolworths has a new policy where they charge customers up to $1.20 for mesh bags to use when purchasing fruit and vegetables, instead of giving away free plastic bags
Many Aussies were unimpressed by the new charge; one said, ‘This is where their next billion dollar profit will be made.
Another added: ‘There’s no chance I’ll pay for that.
Some have scoffed at the hypocrisy of Woolworths’ move to go plastic-free, in the wake of the initiative to phase out single-use plastic shopping bags across the country.
‘Did they also remove the hard plastic boxes for 100 grams of pre-cut onions, which used 10,000 times as much plastic?’ another said.
Others didn’t understand what the fuss was about.
‘Buy a pack of 80c freezer bags and use them. You also get the other freezer bags as a bonus,’ said someone.
“Time you put on your big boy pants and tolerate mild discomfort for the sake of the planet.”
“Use net bags, reuse old bags, or better yet, get the hell out of using a bag every time you want an apple.” It’s really not that hard. This is not about Woolworths profits.
Many Aussies are outraged by the new charge
In April 2022, South Australia became the first state where Woolworths introduced compostable fruit and vegetable bags.
The move has the potential to divert up to 70 tons of plastic waste from landfill annually and has been branded a major breakthrough in sustainable shopping.
Western Australian will follow suit in March next year.
In a statement, Woolworths said it is currently going through a six-week trial in 12 stores to test different packaging options.
‘Customers who shop in a pilot store can choose to bagless their fruit and vegetable purchases or to bring their own reusable bag. We will also be offering reusable mesh bags,” a spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia.
“As the trial period kicks off, we are offering all our customers who shop in the selected trial stores a 3-pack of Woolworths reusable mesh bags for 30 cents. These bags can be used again and again.
“We understand this will be an adjustment for customers and would like to thank our customers for helping us prepare for the upcoming WA government ban on single use fruit and vegetable pouches.”