Housekeeping · 식품 위생

Reusable grocery bag care in 6 steps: separate raw meat, wash and dry

Wash cloth bags according to their labels and hand-clean lined bags as appropriate. Separate raw meat and ready-to-eat foods and dry bags completely.

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Wikimedia Commons · Corn cheese / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 (unmodified) · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗

Reusable bags can collect food juices or soil. Based on Health Canada and New York State guidance, these steps help reduce cross-contamination. The photo depicts a bag, not washing.

Your try-it-at-home checklist

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1. Use separate bags for raw meat, poultry or seafood and for produce or ready-to-eat foods. Wrap packaged raw meat in another bag to contain leaking juices.
2. Empty the bag and inspect its coating, liner, insulation and care label. Remove receipts and crumbs, and follow the maker’s material-specific instructions.
3. Machine-wash washable cloth bags using the permitted detergent and cycle. Hand-wash non-machine-washable or lined bags with warm soapy water when appropriate.
4. Thoroughly clean a bag after raw-meat juices leak inside. Clean hands and the counter where the bag was placed, and reserve grocery bags for food rather than gym clothes or shoes.
5. Dry the inside, seams and folded bottom completely. Never store damp bags tightly folded; tumble-dry only if the label permits.
6. Store clean bags in a cool, dry place. Check for odors, persistent stains and damage before reuse, and replace bags that cannot be safely cleaned.

Health CanadaReusable grocery bags and bins ↗Government food-safety instructions for raw-meat separation, washing cloth or lined bags, drying and cleaning after leaks.New York State Department of HealthReusable Grocery Bags: A Smart Choice But Play It Safe ↗Public-health guidance on cloth washing, plastic-lined cleaning, complete drying and food-only use.Wikimedia CommonsFile:Black reusable shopping bag.jpg ↗Per-file authorship Corn cheese and CC BY-SA 4.0 rights check; original direct image displayed.Wikimedia CommonsCommons:Reusing content outside Wikimedia/technical ↗Source-level hotlink permission explicitly documented, with independent file attribution requirements.

Your try-it-at-home checklist

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