Lifestyle: Will the bagger think I’m gross if I don’t put my meat in a separate bag? - Worcester Mag

Lifestyle: Will the bagger think I’m gross if I don’t put my meat in a separate bag? - Worcester Mag

Beginning on April 1, single-use plastic checkout bags will become a thing of the past in the city of Worcester. The Center for Biological Diversity reports that, “At current rates plastic is expected to outweigh all the fish in the sea by 2050.” This is a full-blown crisis.

I keep thinking about the entangled Hawaiian monk seal pups. I can’t stop watching videos of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch on YouTube. I stay up at night worrying about starving whales with bellies full of plastic. And yet somehow, I always seem to forget my reusable shopping bags in the car.

Somewhere between the produce aisle and the seafood counter, I realize my mistake. By then, doubling back to the parking lot seems like a grand gesture. I make a point to request paper at checkout and that’s when it happens. The bagger asks me, “Would you like your meat in a separate bag?”

Worcester’s single-use plastic bag ban does not apply to produce, meats, poultry, fish, bread and other food items that must be kept “fresh or unsoiled.” This exemption is in accordance with the statewide prohibition bill and the recommendations of the USDA that say: “Perishable food such as meat and poultry should be wrapped securely to maintain quality and to prevent meat juices from getting onto other food.”

On my last trip to the market, I found myself asking, “What’s the worst that could happen if they go in the same bag?”

A hard-hitting piece published in 2018 by the Journal of Food Protection set me straight. After collecting 402 swabs from 96 participants, researchers Chen, Fur-chi, et al. found, “Overall, meat juice was detected on 61% of poultry package surfaces, 34% of shoppers' hands, 41% of grocery bags, 60% of kitchen surfaces, and 51% of food item surfaces.” Paper bags don’t measure up when it comes to dribbling meat juice.

I know what you’re thinking. "But, what about the SEA TURTLES?"

There are other alternatives. I could follow Joaquin Phoenix's lead and embrace a plant-based diet. I could buy myself an airtight stainless container to lug around the supermarket. I could ask the butcher to wrap my meat in multiple layers of waxed paper and hope for the best. Or, I could roll the dice.

Will the bagger think I’m gross if I don’t accept the offer of a single-use plastic bag for my unscrupulous meat juices? That depends on whether or not I look like the sort of girl who does a lot of laundry.

Reusable grocery bags can carry E. coli or Salmonella if they are not washed and dried between uses. Then there’s the problem of washing machines and dryers whose excessive use contribute significantly to the carbon footprint and pollute our water system.

I’ll need to invest in a washboard and some clothesline. How does Greta Thunberg find the time?

But, Thunberg has the right idea. The young environmental activist encourages us all to make small individual lifestyle changes for the good of humanity. Opt for LEDs over incandescent bulbs. Plan your meals ahead to help avoid food waste. Compost. Avoid fast fashion. Drive less. Fly only as a last resort. Vote for candidates keen on confronting climate change.

In closing, yes, it is unequivocally gross to put my meat in the same paper bag as my other groceries.

What will I do about it? I’m going to try eating more veggies and less meat. I’m going to try bringing separate reusable bags when I go to the grocery store. I’m going to try washing them by hand in between uses. I’m going to try.

2020-01-30 08:25:18Z
https://www.worcestermag.com/entertainmentlife/20200130/lifestyle-will-bagger-think-im-gross-if-i-dont-put-my-meat-in-separate-bag

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