The City of Fayetteville, The Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce, Fayetteville Public Schools, The Fayetteville Visitors Bureau, and Habitotes announced a new partnership on Tuesday with the intention of reducing waste and dependancy on plastic bags in Fayetteville.

Habitotes manufactures tote bags made of 80% post consumer recycled material. The bags are manufactured in China, and distributed by the Fayetteville based company.

Mayor Jordan speaks

Mayor Lioneld Jordan announced the partnership at a press conference at the Fayetteville Chamber on Tuesday.

“Waste reduction is very important,” Jordan said. “By equipping our community with free Habitote bags we can eliminate the waste that is associated with plastic shopping bags.

“These durable bags are made from recycled materials. One bag is made from 5 plastic beverage containers,” Jordan said.

Fayetteville Superintendent Vicki Thomas also spoke about the school’s role in the new partnership.

“Through this sustainability initiative, the Fayetteville Green Teams will be making presentations at every school, and will give a Habitote to every child in the Fayetteville School System. Plus we all know if children are talking about this, parents will listen, and we will get our community moving in the right direction.”

Additionally, we are excited to announce that one Fayetteville High School 2010 graduate will receive a $1000 sustainability scholarship to the University of Arkansas,” Thomas said.

Fayetteville Superintendent Vicki Thomas

In addition to being distributed at FPS, the totes will be available at sponsor locations, and passed out to shoppers on Black Friday. Over 46,000 bags will be distributed in Fayetteville.

Sponsorships will be sold to cover the costs of the manufacturing and distributing the bags. Tyson Foods is the first company to sign on to sponsor the initiative. 19 more sponsors are needed at $3500 each to ensure the bags can be created and distributed.

“We all know that plastic bag use is a global concern,” said Bob Corscadden of jimbob, inc, marketing agency for Habitotes. “Many countries around the globe have taken to banning the bags, or putting such restrictions as taxes and fees on them to restrict their use. Australia and China have outlawed the use of plastic bags. France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, and other countries have also taken measures.

“In the United States there are a number of cities that have taken measures to help decrease the dependence on plastic bags including San Francisco, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, and now we can add Fayetteville to that list of names as well,” Corscadden said.