Which day is paper bag day?

World Paper Bag Day is observed on July 12 every year to spread awareness about plastic pollution and encourage the use of environment-friendly alternatives. Use of paper bags, which are easily recyclable, will help reduce plastic waste that takes years to decompose, causing environment pollution.

While the world awakens to the realities of environment pollution and climate change, the World Paper Bag Day becomes an important event that prompts us towards adopting sustainable lifestyle.

History of paper bags

The history of paper bags can be traced back to the 19th Century. In 1852, American inventor Francis Wolle invented and patented the first paper bag machine. Almost two decades later in 1971, Margaret E Knight invented a machine that could produce flat-bottom boxy paper bags. Knight came to be known as “the mother of the grocery bag”.

In 1883, Charles Stillwell added pleated sides to the paper bag. Walter and Lydia Deubener created the first handled paper shopping bag in 1912 by adding strings in a continuous loop to the conventional paper sack. The Deubeners also won a patent for their invention and became full-time producers of shopping bags.

Significance

Millions of brands switched to paper bags to encourage minimal and sustainable packaging. Their use has added an aesthetic quotient to shopping. Celebrating World Paper Bag Day is important as it raises awareness about the environment, harmful effects of use of plastic and pollution.

How to celebrate

Not only are paper bags 100 percent recyclable, they also consume less energy to manufacture. Paper bags are also quite sturdy and can hold around 10-14 items. They are safe for animals.

To celebrate the day, children are encouraged to use paper bags and are informed about the harmful effects of plastics on environment in schools. Those who buy groceries can use paper sacks to collect the items.

(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani )

History of Paper Bag Day

Though it is unclear who officiated Paper Bag Day, we can surmise that it must have been founded in order to raise awareness about important environmental issues like climate change and to promote a more sustainable lifestyle by introducing paper bags as alternatives to plastic bags.

What we do know is the history of the paper bag itself, which can be traced back to American school teacher-turned-priest-turned-inventor Francis Wolle. In 1852, he invented and patented the first paper-bag-making machine, after which he and his brother founded the Union Bag and Paper Company. They opened a paper plant in Savannah, Georgia, which employed 500 people and became a bit of a tourist attraction, as people would come by to see ‘1,000 feet of paper flying by per minute.’ The plant is still there to this day.

In 1871, Margaret E. Knight decided to refine Wolle’s design by inventing a machine that would produce paper bags with flat boxy bottoms. This improvement earned her the title of ‘mother of the grocery bag,’ as it was the key template for the foldable paper bags we use today. In 1883, Charles Stillwell tweaked Knight’s design further, adding pleated sides to the paper bag in order to make it easier to carry, fold, and store. He invented the machine to produce this design and then, in 1912, Walter Deubener added a cord to reinforce the paper bags and handles for ease of carrying. Thus the final product, which is the paper bag of today, is clearly a combined effort of all these inventors. So we have many to thank!