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A recycling program that began as a voluntary effort in Phoenix is being expanded into a statewide drive to reduce the number of plastic grocery bags that find their way into Arizona landfills.

The Arizona Food Marketing Alliance joined with the City of Phoenix in November to encourage the reuse of plastic grocery bags. City officials estimate that more than 300 million of plastic bags are used by its residents each year. These bags, which are made from petroleum, end up in landfills unless they are recycled or reused, and it takes up to 1,000 years for them to break down.

The Arizona Food Marketing Alliance (AFMA) established a program in conjunction with the City of Phoenix to address this issue.

Alliance members established bag recycling stations in their grocery stores. Participating retailers began selling reusable cloth bags to its shoppers. Some are also taking a nickel off the grocery bill for each plastic bag that a consumer reuses on their next shopping trip.

Given the successful launch of this program in Phoenix, members of the food marketing alliance are making this a statewide effort, which included participation in the 2008 celebration of Arizona Weights and Measures Week in Yuma, Tucson, Scottsdale, Mesa and Flagstaff.

Stores that helped to put on in this event set up a recycling information station. Students were given information on why it’s important to return these bags to stores, where they can be collected, and how the bags are turned into new grocery bags.

In addition, students were provided with a list of ways that the bags could be used for another purpose, and they saw a purse and handbag, created by Weights and Measures Investigator Linda Wetzel, that was created solely from plastic grocery bags.

Top ten ways to Recycle Your Grocery Bags

No. 10: Packing your lunch

No. 9: Carrying wet swim suits No. 8: Packing / mailer filler

No. 7: Storing and organizing stuff (toys)

No. 6: Picking up pet waste

No. 5: Use it to carry dirty laundry when you travel

No. 4: Emergency rain hat

No.3: Trash Bag for the Car

No. 2: Small trash can liners And…

The No. 1 way to reuse your Grocery Bags: Bring them back to the store – reuse them, or place them in a grocery store recycling bin!

Weights and Measures Investigator Linda Wetzel, left, used plastic grocery bags to create the handbag and purse shown above. “I never saw plastic bags made into handbags,” said Summer Coronado of Tucson. “It was so cool!”