All posts by Bulletin Bag

Sustainability on Campus: University of Maine is Making a Difference

Green Issues, , ,

usgbc_logoThe Princeton Review’s Guide to 322 Green Colleges: 2012 Edition was recently released, in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council. The guide profiles—yep, you guessed it—322 schools that demonstrate a notable commitment to sustainability. It lists vital stats on eco-friendliness and covers everything from solar panel use and green majors to fair-trade fashion and green options for getting around campus.

In 2011, Green Rating scores were tallied for 768 colleges and universities. Of those, only 18 schools attained top scores of 99. Bulletin Bag [.com], based in Maine, is proud to say that the University of Maine is among this elite group of 18.

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Custom Shopping Bags Third Most Popular Promotional Product in 2011

Bulletin Bag Products, Promotion Ideas

paper_plastic_neither_bagLooking for custom shopping bags for your organization? You’re not alone. The Promotional Products Association International has reported that, in the United States, custom reusable bags moved from the fourth to the third largest promotional product segment. Bag sales totaled $1.27 billion in 2011!

We’re not surprised. As more and more towns, cities, and municipalities seek ways to reduce plastic bag consumption, organizations have been running to snap up custom grocery bags to get in the hands of clients and prospects. We’ve been saying for quite a while how great reusable bags are for so many reasons (environmental ones aside).  Custom shopping bags as tradeshow giveaways give loads of exposure at the event, combined with the exposure when the bags are reused over and over–providing impressions every time they’re used. Don’t remember us saying that? Read our blog from back in 2010: https://www.bulletinbag.com/blog/conference-bag-giveaways.html

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Reusable Bags Do Not Cause Illness

Green Issues,

paper_plastic_neither_bagIf you’re like us, you’re getting tired of “studies” that make reusable grocery bags out to be nasty breeding grounds for every gross germ in the universe and the reason why plastic is better. The thing that really makes you sick? Not using common sense!

You may have read that last week, some Oregon researchers investigated a recent outbreak of norovirus amongst members of a girls’ soccer team. We won’t gross you out with the details, but suffice it to say that a girl got sick, and seven other players and chaperones fell ill even though nobody had come in direct contact with the original patient after she first displayed symptoms. The common link? **Insert scary music** A reusable grocery bag of snacks that had been stored in the bathroom.Yep, all of the sick people ate cookies that were stored in that reusable bag. How did the nasty bug get to the cookies? You can read the dirty details here.

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Graduating in a Recycled Plastic Bottle

Green Issues, ,

This year’s Rhode Island College graduates will receive their diplomas in recycled plastic bottles! Not literally, of course, but their traditional black caps and gowns are made from an eco-friendly material called GreenWeaver. The fabric is spun from molten plastic pellets, which are produced completely from recycled plastic bottles (about 23 per gown).

greenweaver

After the ceremony, the gowns will be recycled (again!) into carpet. We think this is an amazing way to keep reusing materials, and yet another reason why recycling is so important. Swapping your disposable bottles for reusable water bottles is best, but if you can’t bear to do that, at least make sure they’re properly recycled!

Nonprofit Water Bottle Giveaway: Ten Days Left!

Promotion Ideas, ,

your_logo_imgOur water bottle division’s nonprofit water bottle giveaway contest isn’t over yet! Join the seven great schools and nonprofits already entered to win 100 Child Safe Aluminum Water Bottles for a fundraiser! Check out these awesome entries (so far!):

1. “The Pittsburg Tote Bag Project collects new & gently used tote bags to donate to local food pantries. We will use the bottles to encourage reuse & give back to our supporters who donate from the community! We want to live our mission so reusable bottles are a great PR tool for us to help our neighbors”

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RuMe Folding Bags: Now at Bulletin Bag [.com]

Bulletin Bag Products, Promotion Ideas, ,

Bulletin Bag is very excited to announce that we now carry RuMe folding bags! All of us here are in love with everything about these awesome bags–from the colors and patterns (more than 20 to choose from!), to the construction, you really can’t go wrong with selecting RuMe fold-up bags for your messaging vehicle.


So why are we so excited about this bag? The Medium RuMe bag features 11.5” handles, box-stitched sides and bottom, and water-resistant fabrics that hold 50 pounds. Oh, and they’re machine washable. Big bonus!

Win a Custom Water Bottle Fundraiser

Promotion Ideas, ,

your_logo_imgOur custom water bottle division (Bulletin Bottle [.com] ) is giving away 100 Child Safe Aluminum Water Bottles to one lucky school or nonprofit to use as a fundraiser, and the proceeds are 100% theirs to keep!

It’s easy to enter your favorite school or nonprofit. Post on their Facebook wall why yours should win custom water bottles, and spread the word! On April 20 the post with the most ‘likes’ wins, so tell everyone to ‘like’ Bulletin Bottle [.com] and ‘like’ your post!

Have a worthy organization in mind? Nominate them! Ready to enter? Want to learn more? Visit Bulletin Bottle’s contest page or facebook.com/bulletinbottle

Custom Reusable Bag Surplus? Give to the Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project!

Green Issues

We were recently contacted by The Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project for some information on custom reusable bags. We were so struck by their story that we just had to share it with our readers.

pittsburg_tote_bag_project

In 2009, Sue Kerr, a social worker, brought her clients to a food distribution at the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank. She noticed the awkward containers people were toting food home with: rolling suitcases, wheeled coolers, backpacks. She also saw the struggles of those who didn’t — or couldn’t — bring something of their own.

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Use Custom Shopping Bags for Charity

Promotion Ideas,

In Southwest Virginia, remembering to bring custom shopping bags can earn money for charity! “Raising the Ante” is a program at Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op in which shoppers earn a poker chip for every reusable shopping bag they use. Each chip is worth $0.05.

roanoke-natural-foods-coop-weblogo

Customers drop their poker chips into a box representing one of four charities that change monthly. At the end of each month, all the poker chips are tallied, and that money is donated back to the charities.

The majority of the donated funds come from the store’s cost savings on paper and plastic bags. Those bags cost the store between three and nine cents each.

Since the program began in November 2011, more than $6000 has been raised–equivalent to a reduction of 66,000 paper and plastic bags.

Folding Grocery Bags are Popular Customized Reusable Bags

Bulletin Bag Products, Plastic Bag Bans, Promotion Ideas, , ,

Everywhere you look, towns, cities, and counties all over the country are considering bans or fees on plastic bag use. They already know the environmental effects of single-use plastic bags is staggering. In an economy where belt-tightening is not an option, they’re also starting to realize the financial burden of plastic bags.

cg_latitudes_picture

Plastic bag bans continue to create big opportunities for organizations to use customized reusable bags as a vehicle for getting their messages to the masses. Companies that use customized reusable shopping bags for giveaways, fundraisers, or resale have positioned themselves as leaders in an important environmental movement while creating a favorable impression of their brand. What’s more, every time the recipient of this inexpensive advertising tool uses it, other people see it too!

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