A supermarket shopper has shared a free way to avoid buying plastic carrier bags at the checkout: ask staff for a cardboard apple box to carry groceries instead.
Forgetting to bring reusable bags is a common frustration, often leaving shoppers with no choice but to purchase more plastic bags or pile items back into the trolley in the hope of finding a spare bag in the car boot.
The Cardboard Box Trick
A shopper named Abu shared a video of himself taking a box from the apple section of a supermarket. He noted that some people had told him he needed to "ask permission" before doing so, even though these boxes are often flattened in the warehouse and sent for recycling.
In the clip, Abu approached a member of staff to request permission to take the cardboard apple box, and the staff member was happy to let him have it. Asking beforehand is more courteous and avoids having to explain yourself if questioned.
How It Works
Once permission is granted, the box can be carried around the store. After placing groceries on the conveyor belt to be scanned, shoppers can load items directly into the cardboard box instead of separating them into individual bags.
Abu explained that the boxes hold a remarkable amount of items. "When you're packing it, you don't have to put it in separate bags; you just put it right here, and you're ready to go," he said. Once the first box at the bottom of the trolley is full, another can be placed across the top and filled as well.
Shoppers' Reactions
In the comments, one person wrote: "You don't even have to buy anything; you can just come in and take them if you want. Retail stores have to pay for their recycling; the less they have, the happier they are. They get crushed in the bailer throughout the shift anyway."
Another agreed: "As a produce worker, take as many as you want, less for me to tidy up later." A third contributor added: "My mum does this all the time. She goes as far as rearranging nearly empty boxes so she can take them and permanently has one as a tidy box for her car boot stuff."
