Plastic bags can take hundreds of years to break down in landfill sites

Shopkeepers in Overton, near Basingstoke, have agreed to switch to biodegradable corn starch bags made from maize leaves.

But they hope shoppers will switch to using reusable cotton bags or wicker baskets instead of disposable ones.

The village's Co-op supermarket, which gives away about 20,000 plastic bags a month, has also agreed to take part.

We wanted to do our bit to save planet Earth Peter Baker Parish councillor

Overton Business Association launched the new Fair Trade canvas bags on Tuesday.

The new bags, emblazoned with the slogan "We're free", are made of recycled cotton and printed with environmentally-friendly water-based inks in Mumbai, India.

The idea was suggested to the village business association by parish councillor Peter Baker, who owns Overton Fireplace Gallery, in May.

He said: "We wanted to go back to the idea of taking a bag with you.

"The idea is to reduce usage, rather than switching from one type of disposable bag to another.

"We wanted to do our bit to save planet Earth, and ideas like this have to start from the ground up."

Animal deaths

He said the local businesses received the idea "extremely enthusiastically" and the Co-op supermarket hopes to extend the scheme to other stores.

Plastic bags take hundreds of years to break down in landfill sites, and have been blamed for the death of wild hundreds of thousands of animals which can choke on them.

The corn starch bags, which will be exclusively available in the village's 30 shops from 30 November, will cost shoppers five pence each.

Noelle Moysi, from the Faraway Tree toyshop, said: "I am sure people will be encouraged that they live and shop in an area where people care about the environment, the community and litter on our floors."