Woolworths and Coles stores in Queensland bring forward plastic bag ban

Retail giants in Queensland have brought forward a ban on single-use plastic shopping bags as some consumers stock up on the old ones before they disappear.

Bans will start tomorrow at Woolworths stores in Noosa on the Sunshine Coast and Mossman in far north Queensland, with Coles at Hope Island to follow by the end of the month.

A range of recyclable bags are now available for purchase, with a 'tough plastic' option the cheapest for 15 cents, while the dearest, a hessian designer bag, costs $6.

"This is all retailers across Queensland from July 1," National Retailers Association QLD CEO Dominique Lamb said.

"This is about the environment – if they don't comply, the fine is over $6000."

Every year, 3.2 billion single-use bags are handed out across Australia.

A shopper outside Coles in Ashgrove admitted that he'd been taking and storing the traditional plastic bags.

"I think the whole thing is B-S," he said.

"I've got enough to last 25 years, and I won't be paying for them.”