There’s no getting away from it; we have to scoop that poop!
So I’ve been on a bit of a poo bag testing mission to see which are the best eco-friendly poo bags on the market right now.
What’s important when picking a poo bag for your dog’s daily droppings?
Nobody wants that horrific moment when your finger slips through the bag into something warm and whiffy, so strength and durability are definitely high up on the wish list.
It’s equally frustrating struggling to find your way into the bag so you can do the right thing when you’re dog’s done a whoopsie.
And I don’t know about you but I prefer mine to be scent free – I don’t like the combination of poop infused with a fragrance!
Here you’ll find reviews of five of the leading compostable poo bags on sale in the UK
Each of the bags on this list is home compostable meaning you can take it home and put it in your own composting bin.
Just be sure not to use it on anything edible when you put it back in the garden.
*All prices are correct at the time of publication in March 2021.
For this piece, I also brought in dog walker Rikki Sullivan to share her findings with me as she walks dogs of all shapes and sizes.
Rikki also has a copywriting business where she helps pet brands with content, so do go and check her out at www.thecaninecopywriter.co.uk
Without further ado, let’s talk dog poo…. Bags!
How eco-friendly is your choice of dog poo bag?
Have you heard the term greenwashing?
As we’re all becoming more aware of the need for us to make lifestyle changes that are kinder to the planet, so too are marketers finding creative ways to make us think we are making green or eco-friendly choices.
Greenwashing is a term used to describe companies’ techniques to convince us we are making green choices when, in fact, they’re not quite as great as they seem.
The words oxo-degradable, degradable and compostable are used almost interchangeably, but they are very different.
Oxo-degradable and degradable products are often marketed as ‘biodegradable’ and will break down over time, but how long they take to do so can be as long as 1000 years!
Not only that, but they will still leave behind fragments of plastic, so they’re not quite as eco-friendly as they may seem.
But compostable means that the product is made of organic material, and so it will degrade completely, usually in a matter of between three and six months in the right conditions.
Compostable products are also biodegradable meaning they break down naturally, but without leaving behind unnatural elements.
How to dispose of your compostable poo bags
In an ideal world, our compostable poo bags would be composted and you can do this at home, in a dedicated compost bin for poo, or in a wormery.
But if you’re putting your compostable poo bag into the poo bin at the local park, they are still a far better alternative to plastic.
When they make their way to be incinerated, they won’t be releasing the same toxic fumes as the alternative plastic products, so there is still a benefit.
And if they go into landfill, they decompose naturally.
If you are super keen to reduce your impact on the environment, you could consider home composting.
Please be aware that you cannot use this compost on edible plants as pathogens could remain.
Five compostable poo bags tried and tested
Adios Plastic
Website: www.adiosplastic.co.uk
Cost: £9.99 for 120 bags
Colour range: Slate grey, coral pink, or rainbow with a mix of colours
Size: 33x23cm
Texture of bag: Glossy and relatively thick
How easy is it to open? www.adiosplastic.co.uk Easy to separate and open
How long does it take to decompose? Approx. 90 days
Would you chance it after a wash in the machine? Yes
Overall score: 9.5/10
Adios Plastic poop bags are compostable and biodegradable and decompose within around 90 days.
They are made 100% from plants, making them a genuinely eco-friendly poop bag.
There’s no question that bigger dogs inevitably produce bigger poops!
These are the largest of the bags in our round-up, so an excellent choice for those with small and larger pups to pick up after.
These scent-free poo bags are quite thick, so there was no worry that I’d pop my finger through while picking up poo. In fact, even when I tried, I had to exert quite some pressure to poke my finger through the bag.
Available with handles or without, they come in a range of colours; there’s even a mixed rainbow pack to brighten up your poo picking.
I used the Slate Grey and they do a great job of disguising the poo if you’d prefer not to see what’s inside the bag!
Finally, they can be composted at home, and a minimum of 1 per cent of sales are donated to 1 per cent For The Planet to help clean up our oceans and take care of wildlife.
If you’re on a mission to do your bit for the earth, then these are fab.
The Green Poop Bag
Website: www.greenpoopbag.co.uk
Cost: £9.99 for 120 bags
Colour range: Dark Green
Size: 22.5 x 33cm
Texture of bag: Silky and strong
How easy is it to open? Very easy to open
How long does it take to decompose? 90 – 180 days
Would you chance it after a wash in the machine? Yes
Overall score: 9.5/10
The Green Poop Bag Company bags are home compostable and biodegradable, made from a blend of sugar and corn starch. They come in a lovely dark green with a couple of cute cartoon dogs on them.
These poop bags have handles that make them nice and easy to tie up and dispose of. They separate really easily and do a super job at disguising their contents to boot.
The handles make them feel a tad smaller due to the handles impacting on the bag size, but that’s a trade-off for the ease of tying!
I chose the regular size but you can get them in XL which are 28cm by 33cm for larger dogs.
They are quite thick and didn’t split at all in use.
When I tried exerting more force on them, they did tear, but I wouldn’t ever imagine using this pressure even picking up the stickiest of doggy doo.
No double bagging is required here!
The Green Poop Bag Company donate a percentage of profits to Friends of the Earth, helping to improve the planet one poop at a time!
They’ve also won the Green Apple Environmental Award for Best Environmental Practice last year, which as a new company is a huge accolade.
Fetch•It
Website: www.fetchitbags.co.uk
Cost: £5.49 for 60 bags
Colour range: Dark green, blue and red
Size: 22.5x33cm
Texture of bag: Durable and tough
How easy is it to open? Very easy to open
How long does it take to decompose? ‘Within weeks’ according to website
Would you chance it after a wash in the machine? Yes
Overall score: 9/10
I like the feel of these poo bags. They feel really tough and thick and do an excellent job at providing a barrier to that feeling of heat through the bag when you poo pick!
They are made from cornstarch, are compostable, and come in a lovely shade of green with a cartoon of the earth, a cat, a dog, and their paw prints.
I tested the ones without handles, but they are also available with handles and in red and blue.
Fetch•It poo bags have a slightly different design to the others in that they kind of bunch together at the bottom.
This makes them able to bear the weight of even the heavier poops you scoop. They are very sturdy!
The print on these bags makes it easy to see which end the opening is at, and they were effortless to separate, they just slide apart.
I loved these bags as they match my Dogfit Canicross harness.
Fetch•It donates 1% of its profits to three charities depending on which design you choose; Moor trees, Surfers against sewage, and Underdog International.
And they currently (March 2021) are offering 20 per cent discount to NHS staff and key workers.
Rosewood Pet
Website: www.rosewoodpet.com
Cost: £5.99 for 60 bags
Colour range: Blue
Size: 22.5x32cm
Texture of bag: Smooth, thin, and stretchy
How easy is it to open? These bags were a little tricky to open
How long does it take to decompose? Approx. 180 days
Would you chance it after a wash in the machine? No. Impossible to separate after a spin in the machine
Overall score: 7/10
I love the colour of these poo bags; they are a vibrant and bright blue with paw prints all over.
They come on a roll of 15 bags, with four rolls in the box, and are scent-free.
Rosewood Poo Bags are compostable and made from bioplastics.
They are a smidge smaller than the Adios Plastic but still a decent size and will do the job of clearing up poops of all sizes!
These poop bags feel quite thick, and I had no leakages or fingers through, although when trying, they did split with a little pressure.
They aren’t entirely opaque, but they do a pretty good job at obscuring the contents with the colour.
Getting the bags separated was a bit tricky at times. They are a bit sticky at the opening, so they need a bit of persistence to help them part!
Beco
Website: www.becopets.com
Cost: £5.99 for 60 bags
Colour range: Light green
Size: 22.5x33cm
Texture of bag: Silky-smooth and thin
How easy is it to open? Very easy
How long does it take to decompose? Unspecified
Would you chance it after a wash in the machine? Yes
Overall score: 7/10
These are the most transparent of the poo bags in our line up, so if you don’t like to see the poop squished up on the side of the bag, then these aren’t for you!
These are compostable poo bags made from cornstarch.
Please note that Beco also stocks degradable poo bags that are NOT compostable, so if this is important to you, make sure you pick the right ones!
These bags are strong with a good robust seam at the bottom, they don’t feel super thick, but they hold up well.
They are resistant and weren’t easy to tear even with my pressure test!
They also faired very well in the washing machine at 40 degrees, coming out practically the same as they went in once they dried out.
They measure in at 22.5x33cm, so they are pretty standard in size and can deal with poos of all sizes!
What’s the eco friendly poo bag verdict?
My personal favourites are the Adios Plastic and The Green Poop Bag Company, but honestly, you couldn’t go far wrong with any of these.
I’d happily use them all for my poop picking duties.
And I will be doing as I bought all the products tested with the exception of Beco who gifted two travel size boxes I so have enough poo bags for the next two years.
Patch doesn’t much care what I use to scoop, he is raring to crack on with our walkies and find something else to sniff!
Which ones are you going to give a go? I’d love to know how you get on and whether they get your poop picking paw of approval!
If you like reviews of dog products, you might like to read Vax ONEPWR Blade 4 Pet review or Furbo Pet Camera review.
4 Responses
Such great information. Thank you so much for sharing!
Are any of the bags UK made?
Great info and fantastic reviews… Thanks.
Thanks so much Martin!