Plastic carrier bags

By 1989 carrier bags started to be made from recycled material, in 1991 a "penny back" scheme was launched giving 1p to charity for every reused bag. It was originally trialled at Leeds and Mosborough Branches in Oct 1990, the trial was extended to 6 further branches in Dec 1990. Charities which benefited from the scheme included AGE UK.

Between October 2011 and May 2012 Sainsburys cut the number of carrier bags that have been used by customers in Wales by 96%. They replaced single-use carrier bags in all 24 Welsh stores with a new 5p basic bag-for-life. The new bags were available exclusively in Wales, made from 100% recycled plastic and were 100% recyclable at all Sainsbury's stores.