A person has to be mighty old to remember when nails, balls, pencils, cauliflower and nearly every item sold in a grocery, hardware or drug store was sold by weight. Consumers could touch what they wanted and buy the amount that suited their needs rather than being required to buy pre-counted or pre-weighed items encased in plastic.
Those wily Europeans realized that since many in aging populations now live alone, they need less. Individuals who were tossing 400 lbs. of packaging waste away each year, a clear landfill problem, don’t do that anymore.
Why? A new old idea, zero packaging. Bring your own bag, buy only the amount you need – no one else is providing your sack.
Stores also provide customers with free bottles to pour their own wine, olive oil, milk, etc., then wash the returned bottles.
Courtesy LøS Market