Sainsbury's denies double standards in 'bag for life' row

Sainsbury's was embroiled in an embarrassing row yesterday after claims that its "green" shopping bag was anything but ethical.

Customers queued before dawn on Wednesday to snap up 20,000 of the carriers with the slogan "I'm not a plastic bag", made by designer Anya Hindmarch - whose handbags retail for as much as £1,175.

The £5 tote was promoted by the supermarket as an environmentally friendly alternative to plastic and became a fashion phenomenon. Within hours they were being sold on eBay for hundreds of pounds.

But yesterday it emerged that the bag was made in China, a country known for appalling labour conditions. And environmentalists described as hypocritical the use of conventional, rather than Fairtrade, cotton.

Last night, Sainsbury's denied any double standard, insisting it had never claimed the bag was Fairtrade and that the factory in China had been checked to ensure it did not exploit local workers.

Campaigners remained sceptical, however. Sam Maher of Labour Behind the Label said: "If you market an environmentally ethical product, the onus is on you to see it is ethically produced and there is no way you can do that in China. I would challenge Sainsbury's to publish the name of the supplier and its audit report."

Martin Hearson, of the group's Let's Clean Up Fashion campaign, said the move was bordering on hypocritical. Workers in China's garment industry are paid 20p to 30p an hour, he said. While labour law in the country can seem reasonable on paper, experts insist implementation is poor.

Ms Maher continued: "Independent trade unions are illegal. Whatever you buy from China, workers do not have that basic right. The Ethical Trading Initiative has said that audits are susceptible to fraud."

The group added that the use of conventional cotton was contrary to environmental credentials.

"It is one of the most environmentally destructive materials. The amount of pesticides makes it a massively destructive cash crop."

A spokesman for the supermarket said: "We have never claimed the bag was Fairtrade or organic. The point of the bag is that it isn't plastic and can be reused.

"The bag was designed to raise awareness of the use of disposable plastic bags, a goal which it has achieved internationally."

The supermarket said the carrier was made in a factory that pays double the minimum wage for that province and complies with all aspects of Chinese labour law, as well as having operations reviewed by a human rights consultant.

A spokesman for Anya Hindmarsh said: "Our aim has been to use our influence to make it fashionable not to use plastic bags. 'I'm Not A Plastic Bag' was designed to be a stylish, practical, reusable bag that would raise awareness of this issue and spark debate. We feel that we have achieved this aim beyond our wildest dreams."

They also denied claims about the bag's carbon footprint, saying they were shipped in by sea and were carbon offsetted.

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