Paper, plastic or canvas.

Canvas bags are among the types of reusable bags that are currently offered at local stores as an environmentally-friendly option for consumers.

“The option has always been paper or plastic; now it’s shifting to neither and people are making the decision to use reusable canvas instead,” said Dave Goldblum, professor of geography.

Some stores in the area that offer reusable bags are Jewel-Osco, 1320 Sycamore Road; Schnucks Markets, 975 S. Annie Glidden Road; Sullivans Foods, 1401 S. Fourth St.; Target Stores, 2555 Sycamore Road and Wal-Mart Supercenter, 2300 Sycamore Road.

Dave Nesler, manager of the drug store in Jewel-Osco, said the decision to offer reusable bags was for both the environment and the economy.

“I think as a corporation and ongoing enterprise, we know there is a limited supply of petroleum products, so any bag we can keep out of a landfill benefits the environment and the economy,” Nesler said.

Other than environmental reasons, two things Goldblum attributed to the reason why some companies are offering a reusable choice is the reduction of bag cost for the company and there being a subset of people responding to “green” products.

Some stores have already seen a decrease in need for plastic bags.

With about one-fourth of the customer base at the DeKalb Target using reusable bags, the store is probably buying about half the plastic bags that they use to, store manager Carol Van Horne said.

Nesler said Jewel-Osco is also buying fewer plastic bags since the reusable option has been offered.

“I think grocery stores should give an incentive to the consumers to bring their own reusable bags,” Goldblum said, as a way to get more consumers in the reusable bag mind-set.

Sullivan’s Foods gives customers 5 cents off their purchase every time they use reusable bags, so it practically pays for itself, said store manager Richard Wicknick.

One suggestion that Goldblum had for consumers is to get into the habit of bringing reusable bags with them. The more people use them, the more of a difference we will see, Goldblum said.

“With all important environmental issues, I think that the individual’s behavior is less important than the collective behavior in making a significant difference in the environment,” Goldblum said.