No photos but more support from Highbury Barn traders

Michael Long at the Pharmacy, 14 Highbury Park
"Apart from anything else - greeness etc - plastic bags cost a fortune. We get staff to ask, 'Do you really need a bag?'"

Steve, manager of Da Mario, 34 Highbury Park & The Barn Store, 15 Highbury Park
"I say to staff ask people 'do you need a bag", so if they have got a pint of milk then they might think that they don't need one. It's not just the cost, it's the waste. In my experience that works. We've also give regulars our reusable cloth bags."

Jimmy at the Master Cobbler, 21A Highbury Park
"I spend #2,000 a year on plastic bags. Nowadays I reuse bags so that out of every 100 only 10 will need to be put into the rubbish."

Yehia el Nemer, owner of Oasis cafe at Highbury Fields
"I don't give out plastic bags. I support this idea 100 per cent."

Newsagent (with Time Out canopy)

Since July 2009 the newsagent at 9, Highbury Park, London, N5 2AB (just by the butcher) is the second shop in Highbury Barn to encourage customers to stop taking plastic bags by charging 5p for them.

Tip: newspapers and magazines are neatly carried in a cloth bag. If it's raining the combination of an umbrella and the plastic publishers wrap their products in should keep your reading material pristine and dry.

Frank Godfrey

Frank Godfreys Ltd, 7 Highbury Park, London N5 2AB is an award winning butcher. It sells its own reusable bags.

Tip: If you are trying to cut down on the plastic bags coming into your house take a tupperware container to carry your tasty meat purchases away.

Drugstore & Healthfoods

Drugstore and Healthfoods at 17, Highbury Park, London, N5 2AB (aka Natural Food Store and Fiveboys) is leading the way making Highbury Barn plastic bag free. Since 1 June 2009 the store charges 5p for plastic bags. It also sells compostable bags and partially compostable nappies.

Tip: If you've got a lot of shopping to carry (or heavy stuff like tins) then bring a couple of cloth bags or consider getting a trolley on wheels that looks a bit like a golf cart. There's plenty of room on the buses for them.

The Highbury Barn

The Highbury Barn pub at 26, Highbury Park, London, N5 2AB gives our main shopping street it's name. It's got plenty of racey history too - even the writer William Makepeace Thackeray featured the Highbury Barn in his 1848 novel Vanity Fair. It's over 500 pages long, but there's not a single mention of plastic bags.... because they hadn't yet been invented. Of love, lust, ingeniousness, scraps and wills there's plenty of mention though plus wicked (misunderstood?) Becky Sharpe.

Woodland Hardware

Woodland Hardware is at 20 Highbury Park, Highbury, London, N5 2AB.

"We always ask what bag customers want. We want to encourage people to bring their own bags so we don't automatically give plastic bags out. We also stock bio bags for composting and hope that soon we'll start using bags that customers can compost." June 2009

Newsagent (with Observer canopy)

The newsagents at 22, Highbury Park, London N5 2AB (by Woodland Hardware) are always keen to avoid giving out plastic bags. "When we had cloth bags all our customers wanted them," said Vi who runs the store.

La Fromagerie

La Fromagerie at 30 Highbury Park, London, N5 2AB stocks its own reusable bags.

Tip: instead of carting your deli cheese all the way home why not eat it in the shop on the benches provided?

Launch notice for 28 March

JOIN SHEILA DILLON FOR THE LAUNCH OF PLASTIC BAG FREE HIGHBURY BARN on Saturday 28 March 2009

“There's so much horror in the world that we're powerless to change. Giving up plastic bags is within everyone's power--it's such an easy political act.” Sheila Dillon, Radio 4’s The Food Programme presenter & Highbury resident


>>FAMOUS LOCAL FOOD REPORTER IS BACKING PLASTIC BAG FREE HIGHBURY BARN

Well-known food journalist and BBC Radio 4 presenter of The Food Programme, Sheila Dillon, is backing a campaign to make Highbury Barn go plastic bag free.

Sheila, who lives and shops in Highbury, will be at the launch of plastic bag free Highbury Barn event on Saturday 28 March, 3.30-5.30pm at Christ Church, Highbury Hill (nearest tube Arsenal. Buses include 4 and 19).

What to expect
“Come and hear Sheila launch the event, watch the free film showing – suitable for families – of Message In The Waves, and enjoy a free cake and cup of tea. There will also be stalls selling books and local craft. There are taster Shiatsu massages (for a small fee) and a chance to knit a handbag out of your unwanted plastic bags. Find out more at http://www.plasticbagfreehighburybarn.org.uk/,” says one of the plastic bag free Highbury Barn group members, Nicola Baird. “Message in the Waves was made by a young Devon film maker, Rebecca Hosking, who went on to inspire her town, Modbury, and more than 100 others across the UK to go plastic bag free – including nearby Newington Green.”

Highbury is great
“I wholeheartedly support all efforts to make Highbury Barn plastic bag free,” says Sheila Dillon. “Highbury is one of the great London neighbourhoods and its shops bring people together. And they're such good shops--no need to go to the supermarket: better deals, better time, better environment, better life all achieved by shopping in your own neighbourhood (just need to wangle a fish shop in there). The shops set standards in so many ways, so let's do it with plastic bags--get rid of them and make shopping in the Barn even less damaging.”

“Plastic bags are unnecessary and ugly--wrapping themselves around trees, hedges, shrubs and fences in our neighbourhood,” adds Sheila Dillon. “Beyond our neighbourhood they do much uglier work: choking animals, fish, amphibians. And even when they're tidied away into landfill they release gases as they decompose that will poison the world for our grandchildren and their descendents. There's so much horror in the world that we're powerless to change. Giving up plastic bags is within everyone's power--it's such an easy political act.”

You support going plastic bag free...
In a recent survey 8 out of 10 Highbury Barn shoppers (81 per cent) support Highbury Barn going plastic bag free. See the full results at http://plasticbagfreehighburybarn.blogspot.com/

Shoppers say "yes" to plastic bag free Highbury Barn

Here are the results from the survey of shoppers at Highbury Barn done by CAROLINE (13 Dec 2008) CINZIA, NEIL and NICOLA (20 Dec 2008). Shoppers of different ages, gender, ethnicity were asked. Answers were anonymous. For comments see the previous entry "100 Barn shoppers surveyed".

SUMMARY: In this first ever survey of Highbury Barn shoppers, an overwhelming number of the 100+ respondents said that they thought Highbury Barn should go plastic bag free (see question 1 results below). Although some people forget to bring out a bag when they pop to the shops, the majority like to bring a reusable bag or reuse a plastic bag (see question 2 results below). Nearly everyone surveyed said that they would be willing to pay a few pence for a biodegradable bag (see question 3 results below).

Question 1: More than 100 towns in Britain have banned plastic bags - do you think that Highbury Barn should?

91 x people said yes
11 x people said no
3 x people said not really, that they would miss them
6 x people - not ban but strongly discourage
2 x doesn’t really matter/not sure

Question 2: Do you use a re-usable bag when shopping?

71 x people said yes
9 x people said No
22 x people said 'sometimes/usually
14 x people ' try to remember but forget'
1 x person not sure

Question 3: How much would you be willing to pay for a biodegradeable bag (eg, corn starch)? Answers between 6p - 15p.

6p - 10p - x 32 people
10p - x 19 people
10p - 15p - x27 people
15p - x9 people
20p - x2 people
want them to be free x 5 people

Question 4: And how much would you be willing to pay for a re usable bag (eg, cloth)? Answers between 50p - £2.00.

50p- x 9 people
50p - £1.00 - x 24 people
£1.00 - x 38 people
£1.00 - £2.00 - x 15 people
£2.00 - x 5 people
want them to be free x 3 people
don’t know x 1 person
wouldn’t pay x 1 person

Ends survey.

Click here to see results from a similar survey (reported in The Tibune) which was run in Newington Green in early 2008. Newington Green is the first shopping zone in Islington to aim to go plastic bag free.

100 Barn shoppers surveyed

More than 100 shoppers were asked what they thought about making Highbury Barn one of the 100 towns in Britain to go plastic bag free. Full results of the survey will be published at the end of January. Below are comments from some of the shoppers the note takers - Caroline, Cinzia, Neil and Nicola - spoke with on 13 and 20 December 2008.

'Good idea'

'Good idea'

'Information should be in shops - stickers in shop windows'

'Recycling bag info should be available'

'Made me think'

'There should be bins with bags in shop'

'Good idea'

'Good idea'

'Bring back brown paper bags'

'Stop them in supermarkets, charge for bags'

'Big shops should take the lead'

'Shops shouldn't give away bags and extra plastic packaging'

'Agree to get rid of them - stronger bags'

'Good to not use them - alternative ie paper bags'

'If no bags people will have to be resourceful'

'Focus on the environment - best if everybody does something'

'We don't really use them'

'Easy target (bags) Look at the other things'

'Cost issues - worried about the effects on shopkeepers'

'Shopkeepers should only give them out if asked'

'Would like them banned'

'The country should ban tham'

'You don't see them in Australia or South Africa'

'Discourage shops from automatically giving them'

'I don't agree with charging for bags'

'People should have to ask for a bag'

'They should do away with them'

'Very occassionally re-use bag'

'Ban plastic bags from big shops'

'Shopkeepers should ask'

'Big shops should take the lead'

'Like the idea of re-usable bags'

'Plastic bags are terrible'

'Shops should ask to make people think'

'Good idea'

'Think it's a good idea, feel guilty'

'Seen how bags without rubbish collection in the Middle East cause havoc (there was a description of them resembling a weather system- great drifts of plastic moving around)

'Very good idea'

'Needs to be at Government level' ( x2 )

'Agree in principle'

'Use the same bag over and over - education is important'

“It’s a small step. Don’t make it tyrannical. There are bigger issues.@

Nice paper bags? With sturdy handle? Could re-use.

“Need to educate people. People don’t know how long plastic takes to rot down. Before 1940s people used shopping baskets.We’ve created the idea that plastic is essential. It never used to be. How about having a bin where you can share plastic bags, so if you forget your bag when you go shopping you can reuse one. The supermarkets set the precedent. It’s very complex.”

“I’d like a plastic bag free Highbury Barn.”

“Somethings you’ve got to do.”

“My mum would be thrilled if Highbury Barn went plastic bag free.”

“If you want to ban bags need a place to drop the bags we all hoard (to get rid of them, or recycle them).”

“It’s a good idea. I got my cloth bag from Fromagerie.”

“I recycle anyway. I only put things in the bin that can’t be recycled. I use plastic bags for rubbish bags.”
“All supermarkets should be made to stop giving out plastic bags.”
“Highbury Barn is almost plastic bag free. There’s cloth bags at Da Mario and the butcher and the cheese shop. But it is up to individuals.”

“Want shops to charge for bags”

“Supermarkets shouldn’t give them out.”

“How recyclable is recyclable?”

“I support a plastic bag free Highbury Barn” (4 different people)

Traders like you using their bags with their logo, but they don’t like you bringing in an unmarked bag. “They can view the latter with suspicion: they think an unmarked bag allows the customer to nick stuff and then pass it off as their own.”

2009 meeting

Help us make Highbury Barn plastic bag free.

The next planning meeting is on Wed 28 January at 50a St Thomas's Road (ring bottom bell). It's from 8-9.15pm.

What's wrong with plastic bags?

Let's make Highbury Barn plastic bag free. This post is by Nicola.




When it's raining, or we make an impromptu visit to the shops, or buy a bit more than can be easily carried home bags are a real boon. And look at the photo (right) to see how fab the new Highbury Barn cloth bags are.


But plastic bags, the ones we sometimes unthinkingly ask for in the shops - and then typically only use for that 15 minute stroll home, are piling up environmental problems all round the world.


It's not just that plastic bag litter makes Highbury Barn look tatty.


Plastic bag litter is lethal. It kills hundreds of thousands of animals worldwide each year.

• In London 1.6 billion plastic bags are handed out by shopkeepers each year (and just 0.05 are recycled). The rest end up in landfill...



• Plastic bags are really tough. They can take up to 1,000 years to break down yet if they blow out of a landfill site they can choke many unlucky animals to death over and over again.

You can find out lots more facts about what's wrong with plastic bags at the easy-to-use website created by people in the first UK town to go plastic bag free, Modbury in Devon. Have a look here.



Do you like free movies? If so try watching the Modbury wildlife film maker, Rebecca Hosking's, powerful film Message In The Waves to work out why using a cloth bag helps stop so much plastic waste (such as the worn out toothbrushes in the photo) killing beautiful sea birds. Download the film here.



How well do you know Islington? Why not take a trip to nearby Newington Green which has been working on becoming plastic bag free for nearly a year. If you're too rushed to walk, take a look at the blog here.



Or you can read more about how to help places like Highbury Barn go plastic bag free in a book called Ban the Plastic Bag: a community action plan (Sawday, 2008). It's really cheap on Amazon.

Welcome

Paris, New York, Milano, Highbury Barn. Yes that's right. Our wonderful shopping space at Highbury Barn is on the way to becoming that bit more special - Plastic Bag Free Highbury Barn.

Find out more on Saturday 13 December 2008.