Lead alert re reusable bags

We probably all agree that plastic ain’t fantastic and that using reusable bags (especially when we do our grocery shopping) is one of the kindest things we can do for the environment.  However, a waste and pollution watchdog recently gave this lead alert: Some disposable and reusable bags have been found to contain lead, a highly toxic chemical. This alarming revelation comes on the heels of the government’s groundbreaking policy to prevent human exposure to lead, including its ban on packaging for food and drink. 

According to EcoWaste Coalition, its discovery of lead in both disposable and reusable bags “should prompt the packaging industry to align its manufacturing practices with the recently approved Chemical Control Order for Lead and Lead Compounds issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and for the latter to promptly craft the standards as provided in the said order.” 

“Based on the screening we conducted, lead was detected in some carry bags that are used to pack food and non-food items,” says  Aileen Lucero, national coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition. “This practice should now cease, given the known hazard of lead-containing products throughout their life cycle, from production to disposal.”

Aileen explains, “All carry bags will, over time, deteriorate.  Wear and tear could liberate the lead out of the bag, causing it to leach to the food or get dispersed as dust.  The leaded bags will eventually be disposed of in dumpsites or landfills or our rivers and seas, posing further problems to humans, other life forms and ecosystems.” 

She stresses, “While reusable bags are better alternatives to disposable plastic bags, manufacturers of these products should also see to it that they are free from lead.” 

The World Health Organization lists lead as one of the “10 chemicals of major public health concern” as it is a potent neurological, reproductive, and developmental toxin and an endocrine-disrupting chemical. There is no safe exposure to lead. 

Using  its portable, ever-ready, and ever-efficient x-ray fluorescence spectrometer, the EcoWaste team detected lead in many samples of bags used for carrying food and non-food items, such as: 

1.  For disposable bags: 2,300 of the 4,300 samples (53%) of yellow sando bags had lead  from 106 to 5,680 parts per million (ppm). 

2.  For reusable bags: 52 of the 205 samples (25%) of assorted reusable bags made of natural and synthetic materials had lead from 106 to 7,308 ppm.

Overall, 2,153 of the 4,505 samples of disposable and reusable carry bags (48%) showed low or non-detectable levels of lead, indicating the technical feasibility of producing lead-safe bags.

The presence of lead is traced to the use of leaded colorant, ink or paint  on the bag designs and markings, or the use of lead-containing polyvinyl chloride plastic.

So, what to use then next time you go grocery shopping?  Here are some eco-friendly take-home tips: Why not use reusable bags made of natural materials such as indigenous plants and trees that were found to be devoid of toxic metals (except when leaded ingredients are intentionally used in the product designs). Among these lead-free bags are those made of bamboo, banana, buri, and water hyacinth woven into bayong and baskets, bags and pouches from recycled paper, and various tote bags made of canvas, used flour sacks, worn-out clothes, and pillow cases.

Aside from being lead-safe, these nature-inspired (and so chic, too) reusable bags are better than the plastic-based ones, which are derived from petroleum, a non-renewable resource whose extraction, manufacturing, and use generate greenhouse gases that cause the climate to heat up, so warn the environmentalists.

The sampling shows a wide assortment of natural and synthetic reusable bags that the business and consumer sectors are already using to replace single-use plastic bags.

Personally, we have amassed quite a (reusable) bag collection at home, some of which we’ve stashed away in the trunks of our cars, to be resurrected every time we do our groceries.

“If synthetic reusable bags are preferred, consumers should choose those that are not made of PVC plastic and those without painted markings unless certified lead-safe,” Aileen gives this down-to-earth tip. “While some plastic bags were found to contain low or non-detectable levels of lead, these single-use, disposable bags are far from being eco-friendly as they deplete our natural resources and energy, and spawn pollution, while reinforcing wasteful, throw-away behavior.”

In the US, plastic shopping bags for bagging groceries were in wide use in the ’80s and ’90s, replacing paper bags.

Then, in the ’90s, governments in some countries began to impose taxes on the distribution of disposable plastic bags and regulated the use of these. Supermarkets discouraged consumers from using disposable plastic bags and offered alternative reusable shopping bags at a minimal cost, including information on environmental damage associated with plastic bags. To increase sales and profit margins, many supermarkets encouraged the use of reusable shopping bags (for instance, non-woven polypropylene bags cost 10 to 25 cents to produce and were sold for 99 cents to $3). Retailers like Whole Foods Market and Target offer a cash discount for using reusable bags. Here at home, you earned double the points (which you could use to pay for your purchases) when you shopped at Rustan’s Supermarket using your reusable bags (Rustan’s  has its bags for life, which can be replaced — over and over again — if damaged).

In the United Kingdom, reusable bags are sold for a pittance, usually 10 pence, and are replaced for free. The bags are more durable than the standard bags, thus they can be used many times over. This is to ensure that the bags are recycled (but naturally!).  These bags for life are apparently more colorful, displaying the supermarket’s latest advertising campaign.

In the UK, Apollo Bags was the first company to introduce the shopping bag with a rubber-based biodegradable lining which will degrade within our lifetime.

The use of jute and juco bags offers a natural alternative to single-use and reusable plastic bags, of which over 25 million have been sold in the UK. Jute bags can last for about four years and, if used correctly, can replace over 600 single-use bags. At end of life, these jute bags can be used as planters for growing garden vegetables.

Australia and New Zealand have what they call their green bags (literally colored green). They’re designed to be reused repeatedly to replace the use of hundreds of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic bags. (Most green bags are made of 100% non-woven polypropylene which is recyclable but not biodegradable.)

But now comes this big bag problem. According to Dr. Richard Summerbell, research director at the Toronto-based Sporometrics and former chief of medical mycology for the Ontario Ministry of Health, most reusable bag shoppers do not wash their bags once they go home from the supermarket, which may lead to food poisoning. The bags’ repeated exposure to raw meats and vegetables can lead to an increased risk of foodborne illness. In 2008, a study of bags, sponsored by the Environmental and Plastics Industry Council of Canada, found molds and bacterial levels in one reusable bag to be 300% greater than the levels that would be considered safe in drinking water.

A 2010 joint University of Arizona and Limo Loma University study (sponsored by the American Chemistry Council, a trade advocacy group on behalf of disposable plastic bag manufacturers) came up with this revelation: “Reusable grocery bags can be a breeding ground for dangerous foodborne bacteria and pose a serious risk to public health.”

It’s alarming to note that the study found that greater than 50% of the 84 bags in the study contained coliform (a bacteria found in fecal material), while E. coli was found in 12% of the bags.

In the view of this bag-teria issue, the following recommendations were made:

• States should require printed instructions on reusable bags indicating they need to be cleaned or bleached between uses.

• State and local governments should invest in a public education campaign to alert the public about risk and prevention.

• When using reusable bags, consumers should be careful to separate raw foods from other food products.

• Consumers should not use reusable food bags for other purposes such as carrying books or gym clothes.

• Consumers should not store meat or produce in the trunks of their cars because the higher temperature promotes growth of bacteria, which can contaminate reusable bags.

We can only mumble this little prayer with hope in our hearts that the authorities would listen: Lead us not into toxic lead exposure.