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Customers buying three items or less from Foodtown, Woolworths and Countdown stores will be asked in future if they really need a plastic bag for their purchases.
Progressive Enterprises, operator of the supermarkets, plans to save 400,000 bags a week throughout its 156 stores New Zealand-wide.
However, Progressive's general manager of merchandise, Mark Brosnan, said if customers want a plastic bag, they will be given one.
"At the checkouts, we are taking a commonsense approach. If customers are buying items where a bag is needed, for example ice-cream, meat and a lettuce, a bag will be provided automatically.
"There is some staff training involved and there will be information for shoppers at the point of purchase. However, we expect the programme to quickly gain pace as people become aware of it," Mr Brosnan said.
Customers can also bring their own reusable 'eco bags' to pack their purchases into.
Progessive is part of the the New Zealand Packaging Accord, a joint project between government and industry which aims to reduce the amount of packaging, including plastic bags going into landfills.
It was estimated this packaging made up 12 per cent of the total volume of landfills.
As part of the accord Progressive pledged to reduce the number of plastic bags it issued by 20 per cent by August 2008. In the last 12 months it had reduced the number by seven per cent.
Earlier this year the hardware chain Bunnings introduced a 10c charge for plastic bags as a first step to in getting rid of the bags altogether.
The company was donating all of the proceeds to Keep New Zealand Beautiful.
The company hoped to phase out plastic bags completely by the end of the year.
- NZPA
