Plastic bags? ” It’s finish. » Finished, finished? “Finished, finished. »
Posted at 7:00 a.m.
As in this Plateau Mont-Royal Pharmaprix, the vast majority of Montreal businesses seem to have quickly complied with the ban on plastic bags at checkouts, two days after the municipal by-law came into force.
A tour of around fifteen shops and restaurants carried out on Thursday by The Press along boulevard Saint-Laurent, without scientific pretension, suggests that the vast majority of merchants comply with the ban.
“We haven’t had plastic bags for a long time,” explained Echo Lee, of Dépanneur J.Z., at the corner of Rachel Street. Above her head, pinned to the wall, are green reusable bags that sell for $0.75. “Two years ago when they started talking about banning plastic bags, we decided to get rid of them,” she said.
A little further down, at the Étoile Waldman fish and grocery store, the change happened more recently. “I only kept bags to put the fish in. At the checkout, I rather give boxes now,” said Ruben Tham. “There are two or three customers who were angry, but it’s the law. It’s like that. »
Several large supermarket and pharmacy chains have explanatory posters prominently displayed to warn customers. Some have even preempted the ban by abandoning plastic bags before the deadline.
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But among small traders, questions remain. At the Portuguese grocery store Picado, we continue to offer small plastic bags to wrap the pieces of salt cod that we cut with band saws. “Do we have the right? asks Joseph Picado. Answer: The ban only affects bags at checkout, not those used to wrap food.
Mr. Picado says he wants to sell off the small stock of grocery bags he has left with the customers who want them, before turning the page completely. “People are not angry,” he said. “We’ve been encouraging him for a long time. Same scenario at Bocadillo, where Franco Russo indicates that he is only getting rid of his stocks.
Anyway, “our supplier informed us that he stopped distributing [les sacs] “, reported Joseph Picado.
At Saborlatino, a South American market, Valentina assures us that the business no longer distributes plastic bags. And the dozen green bags on the conveyor belt of the checkout? “Only for vegetables,” she says, placing them out of sight. “Some customers are complaining, saying they’ve paid for their groceries and they’re entitled to a bag. »
Others play to the limits of the law. At Lam Kee, a rotisserie counter in Chinatown, customers can leave with their meal in a very thin transparent plastic bag. “We are entitled to those, right? asks the cashier.
Thursday, Valérie Plante’s team was delighted with the speed with which its regulations were respected.
“We are delighted that this has already been widely adopted in most businesses, even before the entry into force of the new regulations this week”, declared Marie-Andrée Mauger, head of the Environment at the executive committee. . “We are also aware that for some, this represents a period of transition, but one thing is certain, Montrealers are ready for this necessary shift towards ecological transition. »