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[NSW/VIC/QLD/WA] Free Reusable Plastic Bags (Were $0.15) @ Coles

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[NSW/VIC/QLD/WA] Free Reusable Plastic Bags (Were $0.15) @ Coles
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pennypincher98 on 05/07/2018 - 17:42 coles.com.au (1888 clicks)
Last edited 02/08/2018 - 10:38 by 4 other users

Just went to the self serves at Coles, scanned the bag and saw it come up free

Coles offer -$0.15

Asked the checkout assistance lady and she says take as many as you want while they are free. Saw one bloke who must be an Ozbargainer take 10-15 yet only bought bread and milk :D

Not sure if nationwide - scan the bag and see if it deducts the 15c. Maybe a Coles rep could chime in here?

My 100th post, kind of sad that it had to be this though :P

From Coles website

Until Sunday July 8, if you forget your reusable bags we’ll provide complimentary reusable Coles Better Bags at every Coles and at Coles Online in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. Excludes Coles Express.

Update: Extended indefinitely. (Thanks crazycs)

Now that this has been extended indefinitely, please try and remember your bags or at least reuse them. Don't just chuck them out, if you have too many you can recycle them at Coles.

Updated Update: Coles to end free plastic bags Aug 29…maybe.

Groceries Plastic Bag

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closed Comments

      • Broden on 06/07/2018 - 19:47
        +2

        Yes its me. I always had my heart in the right place. Buying excess consumer goods at a cheap price and reselling them is the kind of entrepreneurship that got me where I am today.

    • nightelves on 06/07/2018 - 10:35

      Username definitely doesn't check out.

    • AshFon on 06/07/2018 - 13:50
      +1

      HI Broden, I appreciate your concern but its not possible to use this bags 120 times. I from SA and being using this bags for last 9 years. May be they will last for 10-20 times max. They either get wear off or get dirty. Its not practical to wast it after every use.

    • idonotknowwhy on 01/08/2018 - 12:09

      The original Broden?
      Are you reselling these free bags on ebay?
      How many did you take this time?

    • Broden on 05/07/2018 - 18:24
      +11

      That's just sad. For some flimsy bags too. I'm keen on grabbing bargains as much as the next guy but this is just ridiculous. What do people need so many bags for?

        • spaceflight on 05/07/2018 - 18:28
          +3

          I always see people buying actual bin liners. I dont know why they dont use old bags.

        • garage sale on 05/07/2018 - 18:34

          @spaceflight: haven't bough a garbage bag for 30 years …I have one of those frames that is sized specifically to re-use the shopping bags.

          in some of the hi-rise rise apartments, they have garbage chutes and your garbage needs to be in bag.

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 19:50
          +5

          If you're using 58 bags for rubbish every 8 weeks then you're doing it wrong.

          We're a four person household and the red bin goes out every month with a single bag of rubbish in it.

          Soft plastics go to RedCycle, general recycling in the yellow bin and any food scraps get fed to the chickens or composted. Any food contaminated paper or cardboard is welcome carbon for the compost too.

          Do you know what else? Once you cut out the food waste from your general rubbish then you can just use a paper bag instead of a plastic one because there's no sloppiness to contend with.

          I happily compost my lazy neighbours' (i.e. the people who refuse to compost despite being shown how to) waste for them because at the end of the day it's just money out of their pockets and into mine.

        • cryptos on 05/07/2018 - 20:13
          +2

          @Nomadesque: Is Australia actually recycling? Last I heard it was shipped offshore to China, now China doesn't want it so its going to landfill..

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 20:22
          +3

          @cryptos: Well yeah, that's a separate issue which needs to be dealt with.

          Ideally people should buy less stuff in single use packaging as a first step, then reuse as much as they can of what they do buy (e.g. use jars as containers for other things) before resorting to the recycling bin.

          Pretty sure the soft plastic recycling is legit though (at least through RedCycle). It's processed in Australia and new products are created (e.g bollards, park benches etc.) which is what we should really be doing with all of our recyclable material.

          The only reason it got shipped off to China in the past was because it was cheaper to do so, but now they've refused to take as much and are being picky about contaminants we're kind of screwed as anyone who used to process stuff locally is now out of business and we no longer have any ability to process it on our own shores. Yay capitalism!

      • jv on 05/07/2018 - 18:26
        +7

        What do people need so many bags for?

        bin liners.

      • spaceflight on 05/07/2018 - 18:27

        Probably to use once and throw them away…

      • chumlee on 05/07/2018 - 18:28

        Most likely he/she just talking BS.

      • stirlo on 05/07/2018 - 18:28

        Lining their bins once a week for the next 4 years… I’ve always reused mine for bins

        • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 18:32

          So do you put rubbish your bins without bags? I always use bags to stop plastic flying around everywhere at the dump.

        • Sweetnsour on 05/07/2018 - 20:39

          @Savas: bin liner bags rip open once crushed by the rubbish truck or ripped open by birds at the dump.

      • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 18:29
        +9

        I think it's sad that the supermarkets are giving out 15 cent bags in the first place. They should be giving out cardboard boxes if you forget your bags or go back to the old HDPE bags.

        • chumlee on 05/07/2018 - 18:31
          +2

          My local coles has a stack of boxes available for customers to take and use

        • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 18:40
          +3

          @chumlee: They should be forcing customers to use them instead of their thick plastic bags though

        • silverrat23 on 05/07/2018 - 19:51

          They do hand out boxes (at least at my local). The problem is that it's far less convenient than bags, depending on what you buy/ size of the box.

      • wlqrichard on 05/07/2018 - 18:29
        +1

        These bags are not 'reusable friendly' at all as they are not durable.

      • Ordinance on 05/07/2018 - 18:35
        +4

        What do people need so many bags for?

        Never thought I'd hear that one from the mouth of Broden himself.

        • stirlo on 05/07/2018 - 19:00
          +1

          Wow, yeah I thought he’d need those bags to store all his PS4’s in :P

    • garage sale on 05/07/2018 - 18:29

      you'd scan the same bag 200 times if you were doing it yourself and in a hurry …..if you were the cashier you could have an easy time and scan each bag ….. then the customer would be "bag shamed" as people wait in line ….

      • dnutter on 05/07/2018 - 18:31

        at woolies its easier, just buy all the other stuff, then at the end it asks how many bags you used
        maybe some coles have that too?

    • fuzor on 05/07/2018 - 18:35

      I use the bags for bin liners as well but these idiots are the ones that'll eventually make Coles and co disclaim one or two bags per person. Cant have nice things with these kinds of people around

  • Ordinance on 05/07/2018 - 18:31
    +6

    Just putting this out there once again - whatever the merits of a bag ban might be for the supermarkets, it's certainly not a conspiracy to cash in on bag sales. The reason why single use bags have been free up to this point is because its a cheap way for supermarkets to encourage consumers to buy more. I imagine charging for bags will ultimately hurt their bottom line as shoppers will feel less inclined to buy more than they strictly need in a given shop. Rather, the bag ban is a response to growing consumer sentiment against excessive use of single use plastics. If one of the Big Two were to cash-in on this sentiment and ban them long before the other, they'd stand to make big dividends from this sentiment. Instead, the Big Two have chosen the stalemate option to ensure the other isn't able to take this advantage. Not a great outcome for the Big Two and stingy shoppers, but potentially a big win for smaller supermarkets/grocers, the environment and the environmentally concerned.

    • jv on 05/07/2018 - 18:40
      -1

      the ban is a response to growing consumer sentiment against excessive use of single use plastics

      you mean the 2% of overly vocal greenies ?

      • Ordinance on 05/07/2018 - 19:13
        +3

        We're talking about two of Australia's largest companies. They don't give a rats about greenies or the environment; they care about maximising returns for their shareholders. This move would be suicide if it wasn't supported by a growing majority of consumers (ie if it was attempted 10 years ago).

    • jv on 05/07/2018 - 18:42
      -1

      but potentially a big win for smaller supermarkets/grocers, the environment and the environmentally concerned.

      I'm more inclined to get my daily bread/milk now from our local bakery who still give out plastic bags…

      • serpserpserp on 05/07/2018 - 19:25
        +4

        Oh really? You'd rather pay 3 times the price for your goods so you can get a flimsy plastic bag? Please hand in your OZB membership!

    • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 18:43
      +9

      Plastic bags take up such a fraction of landfill and they should be reused as bin liners so that your plastic rubbish doesn't fly everywhere when its collected. It's the other 99% of plastic packaging we get that is the actual problem.

      • serpserpserp on 05/07/2018 - 19:28
        +1

        Using a plastic bag twice (once at the shops and once in your bin) isn't actually environmentally friendly if you think about it. Just use a reusable bag, and use a bin that doesn't require liners. If you have smelly, gunky rubbish, put it in an empty bread bag or something (or if you still buy newspapers, use that).

        • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 19:32
          +1

          At my local tip plastic flys kilometres away which wouldn't happen if everyone lined their bins. The plastic might fly away when it is being collected as well.

      • jv on 05/07/2018 - 19:28
        +7

        It's the other 99% of plastic packaging we get that is the actual problem.

        Yes, and according the greenies the next major culprit is plastic straws !!!

        Once we get rid of those, all the fish, birds and turtles will be safe again.

        • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 19:31
          +2

          Omg!! Hahaha

        • jv on 05/07/2018 - 19:35
          +4

          @Savas:

          No, seriously…

        • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 19:54
          +2

          @jv: Wow!!

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 20:01
          +8

          So easy just to be flippant about the issue isn't it?

          A bunch of people went out and conducted trawls of the area to come up with some actual estimates of plastic entering the waterways. They then passed that information on to statisticians for analysis. More info here: https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/millions-of-plas…

          jv sat on a computer and ridiculed it, presumably without doing anything practical to prove the counterpoint.

          I feel pretty comfortable in which information I trust more.

        • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 20:09
          -1

          @Nomadesque:

          estimated 800 million bits of rubbish are flowing into Port Phillip Bay

          probably because they weren't lining their bins

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 20:13

          @Savas: As I said in a previous post further up, you don't need to use a plastic liner for your bin.

          Have you ever been to a tip face before? I can guarantee you that thin plastic bags don't stay together better than any other bag type when they get run over by a few tons of heavy machinery compacting and pushing piles around.

        • cryptos on 05/07/2018 - 20:14

          Bloody greenies, "smoke em if you got em" hey

        • Savas on 05/07/2018 - 21:27
          +1

          @Nomadesque: I have to use the tip since we don't have garbage collection at our house

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 21:33

          @Savas: So you've seen the big loaders with metal compaction wheels / tracks that decimate everything in their path (including, suprisingly, plastic bags that are a few microns thick)?

        • Savas on 06/07/2018 - 09:10
          +1

          @Nomadesque: Yes, that is how they bury the rubbish.

        • Pantagonist on 06/07/2018 - 16:01

          @Savas: OK, so your theory about rubbish that isn't contained in plastic bags blowing around everywhere at the dump is moot then? Considering that it all gets ripped up and spread all over the place once there? So any other bag will do the same job (including paper)?

        • Savas on 06/07/2018 - 17:05
          +1

          @Nomadesque: I'm not sure where your getting at. I place my garbage inside bread bags just so it reduce chances of contamination to environment. Obviously once it is buried it won't matter whether the bag gets ripped.

        • idonotknowwhy on 01/08/2018 - 12:13

          I thought straws were okay, at least they leave a gap for the birds and turtles to breath, drink and eat through…

  • Unacceptable on 05/07/2018 - 18:32
    +2

    Wtf. I had to fork out 15c bag and $2.5 padded one yesterday. Should I call for refund?

    • jv on 05/07/2018 - 18:36
      +6

      Should I call for refund?

      Just return them with the receipt and you'll get a full refund.

      Tell them it was the wrong size.

    • garage sale on 05/07/2018 - 18:37
      +6

      sure …. go to the service counter, ask for a refund … obviously younger than me and so have longer to live.

    • Ordinance on 05/07/2018 - 18:39
      -4

      This is your brain on single-use plastics kids. Not even once.

  • garage sale on 05/07/2018 - 18:45
    +1

    small garbage bags are about 7-10c each from Glad or the homebrands, people use them for pet poop when out for walks, bin liners, etc …..

    the qty the supermarkets used to buy these shopping bags at would be less then 0.001c each I'd imagine (if some one has actual number would be interesting),

    they will make up for the free bags they are offering now,

    the bag ban was pushed by the government, not the supermarkets responding to the public, they just put a spin on it to make themselves look good.

  • Sammyboy on 05/07/2018 - 18:45
    +2

    What did Woolworths and Coles do with all the remaining single use bags?? I was talking to a manager at a completely different shop and I asked what was going to happen with the bags they used. He said that all their bags were classified as reusable so would not be affected by the bag ban. He said ironically they received a memo from head office to look for any boxes of bags that were not labelled as reusable and to return them to head office so they could be disposed!!! Now that is just bureaucracy at its greatest. Lets ban all single use bags and have a cut off date. Any bags after that date will be disposed of without even being used! Now that is a real waste of plastic bags. Anyone know what the supermarkets did with the remaining single use bags??

    • spaceflight on 05/07/2018 - 19:05

      Probably send them to Redcycle

  • bohn on 05/07/2018 - 18:59

    The woolworths 15c bags are far better than the coles ones. The feel of the coles bags are terrible.
    Vote no on Proposition 24.

  • whatgift on 05/07/2018 - 19:00
    +1

    Since moving to the ACT many years ago, I hardly use any plastic bags, the cloth ones the supermarkets sell for $1 have lasted several years.

    The bags always go back in my car after every shop, and I just place all the bags inside one of the bags, so essentially carrying one bag to go shopping.

    I don't go through many bin liners, since I put large items and recycling in a plastic tub and when it gets full I transfer it to an outside bin.

  • Commander Shepard on 05/07/2018 - 19:06
    +9

    From a South Australian perspective. This has been hilarious to watch over the past month. But I do think that having to purchase the bags does stop me a buying some unnesscary items at times.

    • jv on 05/07/2018 - 19:07
      +1

      This has been hilarious to watch over the past month.

      I used to have a good laugh in Adelaide when the stores closed at midday on Saturday.

      • Unacceptable on 05/07/2018 - 19:40

        It happened in Sydney too. (Woolie in Kingsgrove)

  • Nukkels on 05/07/2018 - 19:07
    +2

    Is it actually nationwide? Half the country has had the bag ban for years already, I'll bet anything they won't give you any bags for free.

  • LustStarrr on 05/07/2018 - 19:21
    +1

    Your mileage may vary with this deal, according to this article: https://www.smh.com.au/business/consumer-affairs/coles-backs…

  • ChillBro on 05/07/2018 - 19:34

    Complementary mean look from the self serve attendants.

  • Spets on 05/07/2018 - 19:42
    +2

    Such a stupid idea. The disposable bags were great rubbish bags.

    (And this is form a South Australian, who has been with re-usable plastic bags for more than 5 years now. )

    • onlinepred on 01/08/2018 - 09:15

      Been using biodegradable bin liners for years now, they are great. Re-usable plastic bags are worse than single use.

  • Rebelstorm on 05/07/2018 - 20:13
    +3

    You all will survive without Plastic Bags, been doing it in SA for years. I can't believe all the crap going on about this, there are a few other bigger challenges in the World, than coping without free bags.

    • sarasani on 06/07/2018 - 01:27
      +1

      I agree! For me, having grown up in a European country where they have always charged for plastic bags (and, unlike here in Australia, they actually recycle most plastics over there — even soft plastics) this whole circus surrounding the bag ban has been entirely painful to observe. Embarrassing even. People survive just fine without using such plastic bags. Really. Believe me. I did it, along with millions of others.

      We've made headlines around the world with our whining attitude regarding this issue. Shall we all feel proud now about that particular achievement?

      Also, the dismissive attitude of some people in this country towards "greenies" gets old very quickly.

  • Babban on 05/07/2018 - 20:19

    Coles Stockland Bundaberg QLD said no only Woolworths no order everyone getting pissed

  • sleet on 05/07/2018 - 20:28
    +5

    I work in retail and the entitlement of some people is staggering.

    They think the world revolves them.

    I wish everyone would work in retail and experience unncessary and abuse from self entitled customers.

    • Sweetnsour on 05/07/2018 - 20:48
      +2

      The entitled customers probably won't even last a day in retail. They would always have something to complain about

  • ScoMosas on 05/07/2018 - 20:40
    -1

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/387573

    This was posted before

  • Godric on 05/07/2018 - 20:46

    Can I take someone's old bag to do help with my groceries instead

  • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 20:48

    I'm not sure if this has been mentioned before.

    Visited Coles Tuesday night for three small cold items.

    Went to deli and flavoured milk fridge, got me stuff.

    Grabbed a bag from the fresh produce area, there's your free carry bag.

    It beats holding a chicken breast in your hand for the walk home, half the time they never wrap them right and they're oozing juice from the paper wrapping.

  • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 20:51
    +9

    Not sure what banning the plastic bags is going to achieve. People still need to use plastic bags for lining their bins. So instead of free bags, people will have to pay for the bags. Don't think we'll be seeing reduction in the plastic bags entering the landfill anytime soon.

    • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 20:58
      +1

      People still need to use plastic bags for lining their bins.

      They really don't. If you compost all your food waste there's no bin juice; ergo no need to use a bag made from a material that will contain it.

      Compost your food scraps. Buy your bread in paper bags. You'll never need a plastic bin liner again.

      • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 20:59
        +1

        If you have time to do it, sure. For people with school age kids, this might be a bit harder to do.

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 21:05

          Dude, you don't need to watch the microbes break your food scraps down.

          Young kids love an excuse to get dirty. Make yourself a compost pile, buy them a mulch fork and tell them to turn it over every week. Kids out of your hair and plastic waste reduced. Two birds with one stone.

          Alternatively you can just tell them that the next big food craze on Good Friday is going to be microplastics and chips so they can get in on it early. Yummy!

        • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 21:07

          @Nomadesque:
          Obviously, you don't have any.

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 21:09
          +1

          @homersimpson: I actually do (see my previous post about a four person household).

          My three year old loves turning the compost and feeding our chickens the scraps.

          YMMV. I think it often depends on how much of a damn the parents give.

        • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 21:12

          @Nomadesque:

          I think it often depends on how much of a damn the parents give.

          That's so true. We don't have chickens and compost going, but my kids do love their dogs and cat. Weekends are busy as they have activities on weekends, so making all the effort to make compost is out of question at the moment. Good on you for getting your kid interested in it.

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 21:23

          @homersimpson: Really, once it's set up it kind of takes care of itself.

          If looking after a compost pile seems like a bit too much hard work, have a look into Bokashi composting. It's basically a bin that you empty your scraps into, chuck a bit of sawdust-like material in and then just let it sit. When the bin's full you just drain the liquid, dig a hole and bury it in the garden.

          Even if you're not a super eco warrior type who has a self-sustaining veggie patch, your garden will thank you for it.

          Then you actually get a personal benefit from 100% of the food you buy instead of sending 20% of your cash to putrefy in landfill.

          Also fun for kids from a science perspective and also the aforementioned reasons (it's dirty and stinks when you're tipping it out).

        • onlinepred on 01/08/2018 - 09:14

          Lol no you just literally don't care. And you are going to raise kids who don't care. Good work mate!

        • idonotknowwhy on 01/08/2018 - 12:16

          @Nomadesque: > feeding our chickens

          It must be nice to have the space for chickens and compost. Not all of us are rich enough to live in a house with land and space for compost. Some of use have to squeeze into small apartments with barely enough space to fit the small $4 ikea bin which was the perfect size to be lined with the free plastic bags we got from buying discounted groceries at supermarkets.

      • bugsucher on 05/07/2018 - 21:14
        +2

        I don't think composting works for everyone. You need a lot of space for it.

        • Pantagonist on 05/07/2018 - 21:29

          Common misconception about composting. See my reply above. A Bokashi bin takes up about 0.2 square metres of space.

          I'd say that most houses grow something in a pot or planter box so the partially composted Bokashi mix can be dug into those. If not, I bet a local school or community garden would happily accept it. You'd probably even get some produce in return!

        • djk on 06/07/2018 - 09:31

          Evidently there is a website where you enter your postcode/suburb and they match you up with a local who has a compost bin/pile. You get rid of your fruit and veg scraps and they get fodder for their compost.

      • schnoz bargain on 06/07/2018 - 13:57

        Yes they do. Many people don't have a garden for composting or are even allowed to avoid bagging their garbage. Need to look beyond the end of your own nose.

        • Pantagonist on 06/07/2018 - 15:57

          See my other posts above.

        • schnoz bargain on 06/07/2018 - 16:12

          @Nomadesque: Smelly compost indoors? Even if all the stars align for composting, doesn't help with regulations requiring bagged garbage.

    • spaceflight on 05/07/2018 - 21:00
      +2

      I have always had more plastic bags then I need.

      If I get 10 bags in a week I don't empty my bin 10 times so the rest don't get used.

    • onlinepred on 01/08/2018 - 09:14
      +1

      Biodegradable bin liners have been available for years.

  • Yabbie on 05/07/2018 - 21:02
    +1

    Just got a stern warning from Coles staff about grabbing to many free 15cents bags (I had 3), She said they are looking at putting a limit on it.

    • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 21:03
      +3

      Did you tell them you were trying to save the environment?

      • altomic on 05/07/2018 - 21:21

        saving it triple as much as those anti-Gaea environmental hating shoppers who only use 1 bag.

  • tassieeagle on 05/07/2018 - 21:04

    Storm in a teacup, we have had resusable bags in Tassie for years and the world hasn't ended

    • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 21:05
      +17

      Overseas doesn't count.

    • onlinepred on 01/08/2018 - 09:13

      population of 200 doesn't make much of a difference globally.

  • [Deactivated] on 05/07/2018 - 21:08

    Before the bag ban I took a huge stack of single use bags from Coles and just use those now. Will need to stack up on these bags too now for bin lining at home.

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