Montreal, January 10, 2006 – Starting today, supermarket chains Metro, Metro Plus and Super C will offer their clients a reusable grocery bag at the affordable price of $1. Developed in partnership with Boissons Gazeuses Environnement (BGE) and RECYC-QUÉBEC, this reusable and machine-washable bag is made of 100% recycled plastic. It can replace 2 to 3 conventional grocery bags and can be used to return refundable containers marked “QUEBEC REFUND” to authorized retail outlets.
“We are very pleased to offer this environment-friendly solution to our clients, who are just as concerned as we are, by the excessive use of plastic bags. We believe that, together, we will be able to contribute significantly and concretely to reducing the number of plastic bags currently in circulation” declares Mr. Serge Boulanger, Marketing Vice President at Metro. “Our objective at Metro, Metro Plus and Super C supermarkets, is to help clients reduce, at the source, their use of plastic bags. The reusable grocery bag is definitely a step in the right direction” adds Mr. Boulanger.
“We can kill two birds with one stone for the environment” declares Edouard Darche, Boissons Gazeuses Environnement (BGE) President who adds, “The consignment system used in Quebec for soft drink containers is one of the most effective in North America, not only for the recovery rates it generates – nearly 75% – but also for the high quality standards of its recovered materials. Our objective for 2008 is to reach 80%, as specified by theQuebec Residual Materials Management Policy, 1998-2008. It is with pleasure that we associate with such initiatives that can help us reach our collective objective” explains Mr. Darche.
Did you know …*
- A plastic bag has a life span of about 20 minutes;
- Each Quebecer uses about 350 plastic bags annually;
- In Quebec only, between 1,4 and 2,7 billion bags are in circulation annually;
- A plastic bag will take 400 years to decompose.
METRO INC.
With annualized sales of close to $11 billion and over 65 000 employees, METRO INC is a leader in the food industry and pharmacies segments in both Quebec and Ontario where it operates a network of close to 600 supermarkets under the Metro, Metro Plus, Super C, A&P, Dominion, Loeb and Food Basics banners; as well as over 250 pharmacies under the Brunet, Clini Plus, The Pharmacy and Drug Basics banners.
Boissons Gazeuses Environnement (BGE)
Boissons Gazeuses Environnement is a non-profit organization created by the Quebec soft drink industry to manage the consignment system of non-refillable soft drink containers and to ensure respect in regards of the law, the regulations and the Agreement relating to the consignment, recovery and recycling of non-refillable soft drink containers. This agreement establishes, among other things, the objectives related to the recovery and recycling of soft drink containers.
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Source: METRO INC.
Boissons Gazeuses Environnement (BGE)
Information:
Marie-Claude Bacon
Director, Corporate Affairs
(514) 643-1086
1-800-361-4681 ext. 1086
* Protégez-vous – August 2005 issue and Recyc-Québec
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