As of March 1, one of downtown Bradford's favourite shops, Dutch Treats will be charging for plastic bags.
In an effort to be more environmentally friendly, the store has applied a $0.10 fee per plastic bag, and a $0.50 cent fee per paper bag.
Store owners, husband and wife team, Rob and Tina Bots encourage all shoppers to bring their own reusable bags when shopping. They also have their own reusable bags and baskets available for purchase at check out.
This is the first step in the store's plan to eliminate all plastic bags starting January 2021.
"We made the decision to make our contribution to a world with less plastic," explained Tina.
But it's not just plastic bags that the store wants to eliminate. In their cafe, they have switched from plastic to metal and compostable straws and recently replaced their take-out containers with compostable ones.
The store is well known for selling a variety of European cheeses, and have also replaced their plastic wrap covers with new cheese paper.
Looking ahead, they hope to also bring in compostable meat trays for their deli.
All proceeds from the sales of the plastic and paper bags will go toward a local charity.
The couple is still deciding on which charity will receive the funds, and are welcoming any suggestions from the community.
"We'd like to donate to a charity that does something for the environment," said Tina.
