Starting Friday, shoppers at Sobeys will no longer be able to receive plastic bags when they buy groceries.

The grocery store chain is removing them from circulation across the country, eliminating an estimated 225-million plastic bags used per year.

South Regina Sobeys Manager Pamela Kuffner, said people will still have options when it comes to bags.

“We have come up with a new reusable bag that’s a 25¢ and we also have options of paper bags at 10¢,” Kuffner said. “We have our usual reusable bags at 99¢, several insulated totes, that type of thing as well.”

“In some of the provinces they’ve come up with a program where you can bring in your own containers to purchase things in the deli or the hot food bar, that type of thing,” Kuffner said. “Then you’re not using any plastic bags, so they got their own containers that they’re bringing in.

“They’re implementing it slowly across the country.”

“We’ve already implemented produce reusable bags as well,” Kuffner said. “They’re little mesh bags that you can put your apples and that kind of thing in, reducing plastic, and then they throw into the washing machine very easily and (cause) less environmental issues.”