Gains, drawbacks after a refreshing year without the rigid plastic bags

A supermarket attendant at Gilani's Supermarket in Nakuru assists a customer to pack his shopping on a biodegradable bags on August 26, 2017. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

At the counter of almost every supermarket, the cashier will ask you whether you are buying a carrier bag to add the cost to your shopping bill.

As the country marks one year since the ban on single use of plastic bags, shoppers have finally adjusted to life without plastics. Biodegradable bags, envelopes and cartons are now the norm.