I am a great advocate and user of reusable bags. Apart from the fact that they keep you from being strangled by plastic bags, they hold more, and rip less than plastic bags, and are much easier to carry.

If you should happen to be in a situation where it is necessary to walk to the market, the advantages of a reusable bag, particularly one with outsized handles, or even a shoulder strap, become immediately apparent.

If I can't pack the bags myself at the market, I arrange them on the belt the way I want them bagged.

Even at that though, I have no illusions about saving the planet.

The way that foods are packaged has to be changed(the trend toward individually packaged portions often means that packaging costs more than the food does) , as does the fact that many food items are shipped great distances, requiring an l expenditure of
fuel, that, again, costs more than the food.