a dispenser is disclosed for retaining and dispensing plastic bags which are wound on a core . the dispenser is made of heavy metal wire configured to provide curved tracks in which a core can ride . the dispenser includes a separating tongue which enables a customer to dispense the bags one by one by pulling on the free end of the outermost bag . in order to prevent freewheeling , a braking surface is provided which engages the roll and retards rotation . a supplemental braking force is provided by spring elements mounted within the tracks which apply a frictional force to the ends of core . the spring elements are oriented such that the force applied to the core by the springs as the roll rotates when the bags are dispensed , causes the roll to tend to move downwardly into engagement with the braking surface . the spring elements are attached to the dispenser at a point below the braking surface . as a result , the braking force applied by the springs increases as the size of the roll decreases .