Plastic Bags

Polyethylene, the material from which most plastic bags are made, was developed in 1933 by Reginald Gibson and Eric Fawcett at the British industrial behemoth Imperial Chemical Industries. It evolved into two forms: low-density polyethylene (LDPE), and high-density polyethylene (HDPE). LDPE is the most common plastic used to make wraps, films, and packaging materials. The first plastic bags to be widely used were green plastic garbage bags, invented by Harry Wasylyk for hospital use in his native Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Union Carbide Corporation bought the invention from Wasylyk and his partner, Larry Hansen, and the company manufactured the first green garbage bags under the name Glad Bags.