Starting Monday, Loblaw grocery stores in Toronto will charge customers an extra nickel for each plastic bag they take home.
The move comes months in advance of a city-imposed bag tax that is scheduled to take effect June 1.
Customers are being encouraged to bring their own reuseable bags to the store and will be reminded with new signs, information cards and "green greeters," according to a news release put out by the company.
No Frills, Loblaw's low-end chain of grocery stores, has long had the nickel-charge policy in place. Many locations offer their customers carton boxes to pack their groceries instead.
Loblaw has worked closely with the city in its implementation of the plan. Toronto, as part of its waste-diversion goal, has vowed to divert 70 per cent of the city's waste from landfills. In 2007, Toronto diverted 42 per cent of its waste.
"From the beginning, Loblaw has been the industry leader in helping the City of Toronto reach its goal of reducing the amount of solid waste the city has to manage, particularly the hundreds of millions of plastic bags used and disposed of in the city every year," said Toronto Mayor David Miller in a news release Sunday. "The decision to introduce this program in Toronto further illustrates our shared vision for a modern, clean, green 21st century city."
Loblaw says it has conducted research that shows four out of five Torontonians, or 84 per cent of those polled, support the pay-per-bag program.
"The survey results reinforce that Torontonians are looking for ways to take action to protect the environment and that the Loblaw initiative is another step in the right direction to help reduce waste," Inge vanden Berg, Loblaw's vice president, public affairs and investor relations, said Sunday in a news release.
The company says it's not pocketing the extra change. The fee will help them recover their costs and anything left over will go towards supporting the World Wildlife Fund of Canada.
Gerald Butt, CEO of the WWF said it's a "very, very positive step."
Most customers say they're happy Loblaw has taken this step to go green. However, others said it's a slight inconvenience.
"You've just got to remember the bags everytime you come," said one customer.
Another customer called the plan a cash grab.
"Why don't they have paper if they're concerned about the plastic? It's totally ridiculous and just another cash grab."
To help encourage customers to bring their own bags, Loblaw stores are offering their reuseable bags for 50 per cent off until January 18.
The company's pay-per-bag initiative will be implemented in stores across the country starting April 22, which is also Earth Day.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Chris Eby
