Shoppers walking into Walmart stores in New York and Colorado will soon have to bring their own bags - or buy some at the store. The retailer will stop offering plastic and paper single-use bags from January 2023 onwards. According to Walmart, customers can buy reusable bags at prices ranging from 74 cents to $3.98 at the store.

Walmart’s New York and Colorado stores will join its New Jersey, Maine and Vermont outlets in implementing the single-use bag policy - but does the initiative sit well with current consumers and their attitudes towards recycling?

According to YouGov Profiiles - which covers demographic, psychographic, attitudinal and behavioral consumer metrics - 42% of Walmart’s current customers try to re-use disposable items like plastic bags. Amongst other initiatives personally undertaken to reduce waste from non-recyclable packaging, Walmart shoppers make an effort to buy products made from recyclable materials (21%) and try to buy less goods that have non-recyclable packaging (19%).

Going by these attitudes, Walmart’s single-use bag policy is likely to find favor among an encouraging section of its shoppers - possibly amongst 40% of the general US population as well, who also try and re-use disposable items like plastic bags.

Data from Profiles also shows that a majority (70%) of Walmart customers agree with the statement that they “always make an effort to recycle.” This is around as many as the rest of the population (72%).

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Methodology: YouGov Profiles is based on continuously collected data and rolling surveys, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Profiles data for the US is nationally representative and weighted by age, gender, education, region, and race. Learn more about Profiles.

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