SHAW’S SUPERMARKETS TEAMED UP WITH MY ECO TO INTRODUCE A NEW APP THAT HELPS YOU REMEMBER YOUR REUSABLE GROCERY BAGS
Did you bring your reusable bag today? ….Why Not?
MY ECO’S New App Leaves No More Excuses
Montclair, NJ – June 6, 2014. Star Market Porter Square celebrated World Environment Day on June 5th with a ‘Reusable Bag Intervention’. Star Market offered free reusable shopping bags and MY ECO invited shoppers to download the free MY ECO app, which nudges people to remember their reusable bags. The event was from 3pm to 6pm in Cambridge, MA.
MY ECO and Star Market called on the community to come to Porter Square, 49 White Street in Cambridge to demonstrate the power of collective change. The MY ECO app tracked the number of bags kept out of the landfill throughout the event and to kept things fun. Star Market even rewarded shoppers for reuse with fruit and chocolate treats!
John F Kennedy Elementary School in Somerville attended the event and brought along a few friendly “bag monsters” with them. The enthusiastic young environmentalist greeted customers and handed out hundreds of reusable bags.
Shaw’s Supermarket, West Bridgewater MA, has consistently worked to expand reusable bag programs and offer customers affordable and environmentally conscious solutions. The MY ECO app is a free tool that helps customers reuse more frequently. Information on reuse and the MY ECO app was supplied during the event. Fellow reuse enthusiasts were present to aid in downloading the app and setting up an account.
“Americans use 100 billion plastic bags per year, enough to blanket the earth several times.” says Kristen Brown, President of MY ECO and the daughter of the man who patented the first plastic grocery bag. “It’s time to make a change. It’s time to start remembering our reusable bags. The MY ECO app is a fun way to break the disposable bag habit. Using geo-location, the app nudges you when you arrive at the grocery store to take your reusable bags inside.”
The MY ECO Reuse app not only tracks your efforts to clean up the planet but also sends a calendar alert on your designated shopping day to remind you to put your reusable bags in the car. Shoppers collect points for each bag they divert from landfill which can be used for rewards and donations to local schools.
Cambridge city councilors are slated to review the proposal to ban disposable plastic bags in the city this summer. Former City Councilor Marjorie Decker proposed the ban saying the bags cause pollution, fill up landfills and are harmful to wildlife. Decker is now serving as the state representative for the 25th Middlesex District.
About Star Market Shaw’s
Shaw’s and Star Market is working to become the favorite food and drug retailer in every state it operates. Shaw’s is one of the oldest continuously operated supermarkets in the United States with its roots dating to 1860. Throughout five New England states, there are 155 store locations employing approximately 18,500 associates. For more information about Shaw’s, please visit www.shaws.com or connect with us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Shaws.
About MY ECO
MY ECO is a sustainability network that uses technology to measure and influence consumer reuse behavior. You have reusable shopping bags, MY ECO helps you remember to use them. The MY ECO approach helps consumers break the disposable-bag habit through positive reinforcement, social engagement and financial incentives; and by creating a collaborative relationship between consumers and retailers. MY ECO was founded in 2010 by Kristen Brown, a former U.S. EPA consultant and the daughter of Gordon Dancy, who developed one of the first high-density plastic grocery bags. MY ECO is working to abate the 100 billion disposable bags used in the U.S. every year.
