Whole Foods is axing a popular cost-cutting perk that pleased tree-hugging customers.
For nearly two decades, the Amazon-owned grocer has given customers a 10-cent credit for each reusable bag they used at checkout.
But as of this week, the incentive has been axed.
Whole Foods confirmed the change, stating that the initiative, first launched in 2008, had achieved its goal: making reusable bags the norm.
The grocery store’s 17-year anti-plastic-bag policy was revolutionary for U.S. retailers and regulators.
In 2008, it became the first major U.S. supermarket chain to ban plastic bags at checkout.
At the time, customers lauded the decision to step away from the petrochemical-derived bags. Over time, the move away from plastic bags has become commonplace.
Major retailers – like Target, CVS, and Walmart – have all barred the production of single-use plastics for their checkout locations.
Whole Foods announced a change coming to its store this week
For years, customers have left Target stores with red and grey canvass bags instead of the old glimmering plastic bags.
CVS shoppers have carted their items in brown paper bags with sturdy handles.
Municipalities have joined in on the bag-banning: California passed state-wide restrictions on plastic, while New York City banned the bags from stores.
Still, some Whole Foods employees aren’t thrilled to see the perk disappear.
Multiple spoke out about potential reactions from angry customers in a thread on Reddit.
‘It’s company-wide and a shame,’ one poster said on the social media app.
‘We will have some upset guests and the ideas that Amazon has truly «wrecked Whole Foods» and «isn’t Bezos rich enough» will be heard around the world once again.’
Grocery shake-ups
Whole Foods isn’t the only grocer making massive changes to its customer interactions.
New York regulators stopped stores from providing plastic bags after Whole Foods adopted the policy
Whole Foods – like many other retailers – shifted over to paper bags at checkout stations
Aldi recently confirmed plans to open 225 new stores across the U.S. this year.
The plan to open new locations is the next step after Aldi purchased southern grocery chains Winn Dixie and Harvey Supermarkets.
Also, grocery customers have seen new roll-outs of purchase limits on eggs.
Major retailers have capped the number of egg cartons customers can buy from each store per day.
Trader Joes, for example, only allows customers to buy one carton of eggs a day.
The limitations have sent shoppers rushing to stores to scoop up the largest offerings of the limited supplies.
Eggs have been a hot commodity after American farmers culled millions of egg-laying hens in early 2025.
Farmers killed the birds as a deadly bird flu surged through avian populations in the U.S.
But the preventative measure has nullified production of the eggs. The supply-side issue has inflated grocery egg prices to historic levels.
