Some SouthCoast Stop & Shops Have Already Ended Bag Fees
UPDATE: Stop & Shop spokesperson Stephanie Cunha told us late Tuesday night that almost all Massachusetts Stop & Shop stores would be going back to free brown paper bags on Wednesday, October 16. “We have heard our customers loud and clear, and as a result, we have decided to eliminate the 10-cent paper bag fee for our in-store shoppers,” Cunha said.
Looks like some SouthCoast Stop & Shop supermarkets have already bagged their bag fees, with more ready to follow suit beginning Wednesday.
Last week, we reported that Stop & Shop stores in Rhode Island were eliminating the 10-cent paper bag fee in all of its Ocean State stores, as well as instituting other measures to lower prices across the board.
We were told then by Stop & Shop spokesperson Stephanie Cunha that they planned to also eliminate the bag fees in Massachusetts as well, but that it might take a little time.
“We can confirm Stop & Shop is also looking to eliminate the 10-cent bag fee in Massachusetts, but the rollout is going to take a bit longer given that in Mass., there are some local ordinances that require us to charge for paper,” Cunha said. “Will keep you posted as soon as it's official in Mass. as well.”
READ MORE: Stop & Shop Eliminating Bag Fees for Rhode Island, But What About Massachusetts?
Well, it turns out some of our local stores have either already done away with the bag fees already, or will be this week.
According to an employee at the Dartmouth Street store in New Bedford’s South End, that store has already done away with the bag fees. Same for the Kings Highway store in the city’s North End.
The North Dartmouth store on Faunce Corner Road will stop charging for bags on Wednesday, October 16, an employee confirmed.
An employee at the Fairhaven Huttleston Avenue Stop & Shop said he believed that this coming Friday, October 18, would be the last day that store would be charging for bags.
READ MORE: Most Massachusetts Stop & Shop Stores Going Back to Free Bags on Wednesday
We were unable to reach anyone at the Stop & Shop stores in East Wareham or Fall River, but it’s safe to assume the bag fees are on their way out across the board sooner rather than later.
Stop & Shop first began charging for paper bags in Massachusetts in May 2023, in part as an effort to push customers toward using more environmentally-friendly reusable bags.
New Bedford-Area Shopping Carts, Ranked
Gallery Credit: Barry Richard