SM Supermalls use more expensive plastic bags

DAVAO CITY, Philippines - Although most businessmen would rather opt for cheaper and lower overhead costs to post a bigger profit, the SM Supermalls beg to differ. "The bags that we are using right now is 12 percent more expensive than the ordinary plastic bags," Melbert Villanueva, assistant store manager of SM Supermarket, said in an interview last Tuesday. The SM Supermarket and the SM Department Store have already shifted to the use of biodegradable plastic bags. "We use about 300,000 large-sized plastic sando bags for our grocery and about 200,00 large-sized plastic sando bags for the department store," Villanueva said. "This is at no extra cost to our customers," Villanueva added. Villanueva also said the biodegradable bags now being used by the supermarket and department stores of SM City Davao only have a life span of six months in contrast to the 100 year lifespan of ordinary plastic bags. "The moment it is exposed to sunlight, its deterioration starts," Villanueva said. Villanueva added that aside from the plastic bags, SM Supermarket is also encouraging the use of the green bag, a canvass bag that can be reused instead of the plastic bags. "There are about 1.5 million green bags that have already been released," Villanueva said. - Sun.Star Davao