Asda has ditched its single-use plastic grocery bags in a bid to tackle pollution.
The supermarket giant said the new rule will affect all of its 630 stores across the UK.
The free bags were previously available for customers to use in Asda's fruit and vegetable aisles – now shoppers will have to bring one of their own or face a 30p charge for a reusable 'Veggio' bag, reports the MEN.
The policy is similar to single-use plastic bans imposed by rivals Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury's last year.
Asda hopes the policy will remove more than 100 million pieces of plastic from its shelves per year.
Veggio bags are made from recycled plastic water bottles and were trialled across nine UK stores last September.
The company said it sold 30,000 of these reusable bags each week during the pilot.
Asda also announced it will no longer be selling its conference pears in plastic punnets, which it estimates will save 170 tonnes of plastic per year.
Asda's director of produce, Dominic Edwards, said: "We know that our customers and colleagues are really passionate about doing the right thing for the environment and this move is just another way we are helping them make sustainable choices, without compromising on the quality of our produce.
"Following some really positive feedback on our trial, we’re excited to roll out the removal of the plastic bags across all our stores, as we continue to work towards our plastic reduction targets as a business."
