Don't Throw Out Mesh Produce Bags: 16 Brilliant Hacks To Reuse Them

We live in a fast-paced, disposable-minded culture where single-use items are part and parcel of everyday life. Although we can't individually do anything to reverse this wasteful mindset, there are ways we can counteract the effect, like giving a second life to items that would otherwise be thrown away. One example of this resourceful repurposing is to reuse those disposable mesh produce bags that you have accumulated after various grocery trips. 

While mesh produce bags can take a significant amount of time to decompose in a landfill, you can sidestep the negative impact that they can have on the environment by putting them to work in your daily life. If you're coming up short with applications for how to use them, the good news is that they are truly limitless in their potential uses: They can store your children's toys, hold plastic grocery bags, be converted into dish scrubbers for the kitchen, carefully saved and reused next time you're shopping for produce, just to name a few ideas. If you want to make a difference and cut down on your personal waste, this is an excellent place to begin.

Children's bath toys make bath time more fun for little ones, but they can also get out of control if they end up strewn around the bathroom every day. Mesh produce bags are an excellent storage solution for water toys, since they are made from plastic and won't hold water or mildew. Pair the mesh bag with an adhesive hook so they drip into the bathtub, then encourage your children to pick up all of the toys at the end of their bath. They'll be drip-dried and ready to use again next bath time.

Mesh produce bags make the perfect storage resource for handheld gardening tools like a trowel, hand shears, or a hand tiller. Since they are able to air out well, you'll also benefit from the fact that they won't retain moisture on the tools, which could lead to rust with time. Keeping all your gardening accessories in one convenient place can also cut down on how long it takes to track down your tools when you need them.

If you're tired of stepping on hard plastic building blocks, try this simple toy storage idea that will help keep the playroom tidy: Cut a small slit in a mesh produce bag and pop them inside. You can throw all of the building blocks inside one bag together, or if your children's collection is extensive, you can organize them by type: One bag for building bricks, one for vehicles, one for characters, and so on. Get your kids involved by inviting them to clean up with the bags, too.

Next time you're headed out on a picnic, use a mesh produce bag to hold your meal and supplies. From loose pieces of fruit to small baggies and containers filled with crackers, cheeses, and treats, you can fit quite a lot in a mesh bag. If multiple people are going on the picnic, you can make it a more personal event by packing a mesh picnic bag for each individual.

One of the easiest and most intuitive ways to reuse your mesh produce bags is to put them back into your produce shopping cycle. Simply cut a hole on one side and throw it into your larger canvas or reusable grocery bag. Since mesh produce bags are so compact, you can easily hold many at once. You'll also keep plastic pollution down by not needing to use plastic bags that farmer's market vendors or grocery stores offer.

Keeping your family's pool toys organized can be easier than ever if you utilize a mesh produce bag. Diving rings, water balls, rubber duckies, goggles, and more can be stashed into these plastic bags and thrown into your pool bag. Store the filled bag in your garage or car if you have to drive to the swimming pool, or keep it on your patio if you have a pool in your backyard.

If your little ones enjoy playing in a sandbox or at the beach and you're tired of bringing a boatload of sand home with you, storing their toys in a mesh produce bag is a win-win: You can keep the toys all organized and in one place while also reducing the amount of sand that you carry home. Give the bag a good couple of shakes after the toys are inside to dislodge as much excess sand as possible.

Certain veggies like potatoes, onions, and garlic do best when stored in a place where they can get adequate ventilation. While you can purchase wire mesh baskets and other well-ventilated containers, you can just as easily repurpose mesh produce bags to hold veggies that may otherwise go bad. You'll save money and keep your produce fresher for longer.

If you're tired of tennis balls rolling around the garage, you can use a mesh produce bag to keep them well organized and in one place. Fill the bag with a number of balls, then hang the bag of balls from a hook in the garage, where you can easily retrieve one when you need it. 

If you're a gardener, you can use a mesh produce bag whenever you're ready to harvest your crops. Since they are designed to keep produce in the grocery store, you can rest assured that they will securely hold your tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, and even fresh herbs when it's time to enjoy the fruits of your labors.

If you're a lover of upcycling, you can easily give a clever second life to an old produce bag. Try making a mesh produce bag dish scrubber, which will give you clean, eco-friendly results. This scrubber is free and very effective at scouring sinks, tubs, and dishes. It only takes a little time to craft this resourceful cleaning tool, and you can find tutorials easily online if you want a step-by-step guide. Make some to gift to friends, as well.

Ribbons are useful for a number of purposes, whether that's wrapping gifts, decorating, or crafting. But when the spools fall out of a drawer or box and roll away, they can become a headache to deal with. Use a mesh produce bag to hold your many ribbon spools — you'll always know where they are, and they won't easily fall out of the bag.

With a little time, energy, and several mesh produce bags, you can easily create your own loofahs for bath or shower time. They will do just as good a job of cleaning you as a store-bought loofah, but it will cost you next to nothing. Get extra thrifty and make several loofahs at a time, which you can give away as gifts, or provide overnight guests with for an extra dose of luxury.

If you enjoy sewing and find that you always have extra scraps leftover after your projects, you can keep these extra pieces organized with a mesh produce bag. Throw them all together in one bag, or sort them according to color in a number of produce bags — since they're mesh, you'll be able to see what's inside without having to rifle through the contents too much.

Instead of spending money on expensive packing cubes and suitcase organizers, reuse your mesh produce bags to organize your luggage contents. Use one bag for socks, another for underwear, etc. They take up little-to-no space in your suitcase and weigh nothing, so you don't have to worry them contributing to the weight limit of your bag.

Reusing plastic grocery bags is a great for your budget and the environment, but keeping these bags can be frustrating. Instead of shelling out money on organizers for your plastic grocery bags, use a must-try hack for storing plastic shopping bags. Use a needle, some thread, and a long cord to make a channel to draw the bag open and closed.