Winn-Dixie unveils stylish reusable grocery bags

Winn-Dixie Stores has unveiled the next generation of reusable supermarket shopping bags with a collection of four festooned with color graphics of mangos, strawberries, flowers and oranges.

They cost $1.50 apiece, compared with the wide variety of 60- to 99- cent versions Winn-Dixie and all Florida supermarket chains sell that are made from cloth, canvas or woven recycled polypropylene. Publix has sold more than 7.5 million of its popular alternatives to disposable paper or plastic bags that are now coming out even in seasonal designs for Halloween. But the new Winn-Dixie versions are made from a smooth plastic that's 95 percent recycled.

"What's particularly significant is this is a smooth surface that's easier to clean," said Robin Miller, spokeswoman for the Jacksonville chain.

Reusable bags used to carry raw foods like produce, meat, fish and poultry can be incubators for bad bacteria that contaminates other foods.

"Reusable bags should be put in a washing machine occasionally,'' said Shelley Feist, director of the USDA Partnership for Food Safety. "And meats and produce should be wrapped individually in plastic before put in a reusable shopping bag."