Mortimer: Supermarkets to rake in $71m from bags

WW1Supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths appear set to rake in around $71 million in gross profit from the sale of their 15c heavy duty plastic carriers following the ban on single-use plastic bags.

Queensland University of Technology’s Professor Gary Mortimer has calculated the big retailers are also saving $170 million a year by not providing shoppers with free plastic bags.

Prof Mortimer says he has sourced an online provider of heavier bags at 9c, rather than 15c, “But if you are buying in bulk, you would get a cheaper price,” he told News Corp Australia on Wednesday.

Woolworths Group CEO Brad Banducci has previously dismissed the claim that the supermarket would profit from the bag ban

“When we said we were going to phase out single use plastic bags one of the things that actually upset me a little bit at the time was sort of the innuendo that we would profiteer,” he said earlier this month.

“The incremental amount of time in store to actually service the customer when you aren’t using a single use plastic bag is material – it’s certainly not a profit driver.”

You have 7 articles remaining. Unlock 15 free articles a month, it’s free.