A Northern California company, ChicoBag, started small and soon became a great, big hit.
With environmental business success stories such as Sierra Nevada Brewery, Klean Kanteen and ChicoBag, the rural college town had a lot to be proud of on both national and even international levels.
Who wouldn”t love the idea of a lightweight, reusable bag that can be tucked away easily and is good for our planet?
The big plastic bag industry and its execs, for one.
A lawsuit was filed in January and ChicoBag press ultimately ended up between the covers of Rolling Stone magazine. Three major plastic bag manufacturers: Hilex Poly Co., Superbag Co. and Advance Polybag Inc. alleged that ChicoBag falsely advertised against its products and was competing unfairly.
The new kid on the block was posing a real threat, I guess.
The lawsuit contended that ChicoBag irreparably harmed the three litigious companies” business and requested damages.
The trouble began with a claim posted on ChicoBag”s website that cited environmental dangers associated with plastic bags.
Perhaps ChicoBag President, Andy Keller should have updated the numbers on his website that made the assertion, “Only one percent of plastic bags are recycled.” He was quoted saying that information had not been updated in about two years.
Once it was brought to Keller”s attention, he removed the statement from the website immediately.
In a San Francisco Chronicle article about the suit, a Hilex Poly representative stated that 11.8 percent of the bags are recycled. His information came from an Environmental Protection Agency report from 2008.
But at least ChicoBag isn”t alone. The lawsuits initiated by plastic bag companies are plentiful. The city of Oakland, Marin County and the state of Oregon have been sued by the “Save the Plastic Bag Coalition” to halt bans on plastic bags.
I think what really got the goat of the plastic bag companies has more to do with ChicoBag”s mission statement, as follows:
“To help humanity kick the single-use bag habit.
“Our mission at ChicoBag is really quite simple — we want to provide best-of-class products and services that result in the significant reduction of single-use bag use. We believe we can best achieve our goal by delivering a wide array of reusable bags that deliver solutions to every lifestyle. Our commitment to the environment is what motivates us to come to work every day and drives us to provide a trusted brand and a portfolio of quality products aimed at helping humanity solve the environmental challenges ahead.
“In order to truly provide quality products we know we must consider every stage of our product lifecycle. ChicoBag believes in implementing programs designed to reduce waste throughout our entire supply chain. From manufacturing to office administration, our waste reduction goals lessen our impact on the planet. We also provide our customers with the resources necessary to become involved in the reusable bag movement. Our goal is to not only provide best in class products but to also be a hub of information regarding reusable bags.”
What possessed Keller to tackle this business endeavor anyway?
After visiting the local landfill he observed the waste from one-day”s worth of plastic bag waste. He began to notice the bags everywhere littering the landscape.
It was enough to inspire him to create the original ChicoBag, first sold in 2005 on Earth Day at the Farmers Market in Chico.
I was proud to see ChicoBags for sale in New York, Maine and Massachusetts when I traveled back east; not just because the product is good for the environment, but also because a 30-something-year-old guy from around these parts did something good and succeeded.
Perhaps the plastic bag companies need to focus on new product development and get in line with saving the earth instead of trying to squash the smaller companies. Talk about unfair!
“We believe addressing even the largest of problems starts with small solutions.” — www.chicobag.com.
Mandy Feder is the Record-Bee managing editor. She can be reached at mandyfeder@yahoo.com or 263-5636 ext. 32.
