TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Disposable plastic grocery bags?

What's the current status of disposable plastic grocery bags on the island? Have they been banned? Will Carrefour give them to you? What about Super U? Do they charge for the bags? Is it best for us to bring a few of them with us? I know they have reusable bags for sale, but that is not what I am asking about.

Thanks for any up-to-date information.

If you don't have your own bags, most places will charge for bags. Best to bring your own if you don't want to buy on island.

When I was there in Nov/Dec, plastic bags were still available in the produce section at no charge. I brought my own shopping bags for packing stuff up.

We forgot bags but Carrefour nearly always has boxes you can use for groceries.

We always use reusable bags and pick up a paper box to leave in car to put the bags in so they won't tip over in car. Also be sure and tip the box boys at Carrefour as that is their only source of payment.

As far as I know, any bags that you receive from any of the grocery stores on island, you have to pay for. I don't know for sure if plastic bags have been banned or not, but they don't give them out for free. I don't think you can even buy plastic bags, other than reusable ones, at grocery stores. That doesn't count the little flimsy things to put veggies in. We put a few reusable bags in our suitcase, folded flat. They take up no space.

Single-use plastic bags have been banned in France starting around 2016 and fully implemented in 2021/22. Reusable bags need to be paid for.

France really went further than other countries with their regulations on single-use plastic for just about everything. Kudos to 'em!

I've got several typical French shopping bags, but my go-to bags are still IKEA blue bags! Those are incredible and virtually indestructible.

I have been in a couple of stores this year that did give out the old black plastic bags (Fairway Mark-it, 2-3) but it is not the norm.

Yup..Peli Deli at SBR still uses the black plastic bags

Those places with bags are on the Dutch side. You won't find them on the French side and I saw Super U and Carrefour in the OP so assumed the French locations. A quick google search shows that the bags are banned on Sint Maarten as well - but they are probably less enforced than the helmet laws

Carrefour is on the Dutch side.

And the Dutch government cannot bring itself to ban plastic bags.

I understand they did but not well enforced.

Nope, not yet. Still.

Elaine--I wasn't sure if they ever actually banned them or not on the Dutch side. Of course they haven't passed any timeshare ownership protection laws either..