COVID-19 means leave your cloth bags at home, says grocery worker | Letter to the Editor

I am not a first responder, but I am the first person many go to during this COVID-19 crisis. I work in grocery retail in Manatee County.

I am writing in desperate hope that people will stop bringing in their reusable bags during this pandemic. I see people coming in with face masks, gloves and other personal protection devices and hand us bags that have never been washed. I will gladly go to work every single day that I am healthy and help people get their food. Reusable bags put our employees as well as our customers at risk. You might know when you last cleaned your bags but do you really want me touching your bags and your food after touching the bags of someone who may have COVID-19?

Even San Francisco, which led the nation in banning single use plastic bags, has banned reusable bags during this crisis. Massachusetts and New Hampshire, among other states have already implemented this ban.

Until Florida gets on board with this, please, please don’t being your reusables to the stores.

Shan Davis

Bradenton

This story was originally published April 3, 2020 at 12:46 PM with the headline "COVID-19 means leave your cloth bags at home, says grocery worker | Letter to the Editor."