Rip Off Britain- Bag charge Moany Man

[Loonoon]

I cannot believe this man. He has really wound me up. He buys fillet steak weekly at Waitrose (so clearly not hard up) but is whinging that they don't give him a 5p carrier bag free for his (packaged) raw meat.

His argument is that reusing a carrier bag that has previously contained (packaged) raw meat or fish for other products might cause cross contamination. He interviewed a scientist that told him about research that shows that any harmful bacteria will only be present for 12-24 hours at normal room temperatures. At lower temperatures they will last longer but be present in such small quantities as to present a very low risk.

Even after that he is still banging on about wanting a free bag. Is he not capable of writing 'raw meat ' in small letters on one of his existing carrier bags, storing it at a normal room temperature (in his coat pocket or the kitchen carrier bag drawer for example) during the week and then taking it back to Waitrose on his next meat buying trip?

Some people are so bloody entitled. A lot of whiny fuss about nothing IMO. And yet has annoyed me so much I'm posting about him.

Odd. I thought they HAD to give you a bag for uncooked food? Whenever I buy any uncooked meat/fish the checkout person puts it in a small, clear bag.

At Waitrose you can now take your own container/tupperware to the counters and they will put your food straight into them. So no need for a bag at all. Maybe he should do that.

They only put unpackaged raw food into small bags, so if bought from the butcher’s counter. Pre-packaged meat doesn’t need to be put in its own (free) bag.

Apparently supermarkets need not charge for bags for cooked meats but can if they choose to. When he challenged being charged in Waitrose they didn't seem aware of this and insisted he paid his 5p.

I turn down the clear bags. I dislike using any sort of unnecessary plastic. I use light fabric pouch style bags that I wash regularly.

Wouldn’t you think that the program could come up with a better target than the application of the 5p carrier bag charge?

Surely muslin wrapped in paper is far more appropriate ?

He was ridiculous. I was really irritated watching him.

Everything is usually wrapped in cellophane anyway. Just have a seperate bag for meat.

I didn't see it, but i do put my raw meat into a vegetable bag before putting it into my bag. Ive been caught out a few times when they leak.

This 5p charge has been brilliant for reducing waste, i remember reading that when it was introduced in ireland plastic bag production went up as people were no longer using them for bin bags etc, i haven't seen that information about here yet. But by putting a value on them it certainly seems to have made people more cautious about use and disposing of them

@PavlovianLunge the other day they had somebody who got fired from work because they failed a drugs test after wearing poppy seed bread

Eating poppy seed bread , not wearing it

There was a couple in the other day complaining that supermarkets had stopped selling the correct coffee 'pads' for their machine. They could buy them online and could get them in Holland, where they travel to frequently. But still not happy. It turns out that their particular coffee maker stopped being made 5 years ago!

You'd definitely want to drugs-test somebody wearing bread, regardless of whether there were poppy seeds on it or not

@BuntyII I recently had a drugs test as part of screening for security clearance, the nurse specifically asked if I had eaten anything with poppy seeds in over the last few days as if I had it could affect the test!

I'm very happy to pay for supermarket bags - they were such a waste. It hacks me off in M&S etc though when you buy an expensive coat etc and have to pay for a bag.

I was too tight to pay for one for a new bra and pants, stuffed them in my handbag instead, and they fell out in the next shop I went in

supermarkets had stopped selling the correct coffee 'pads' for their machine.

Probably the biggest single contribution to reducing plastic waste they could make. The only thing ecologically worse would be rice where each grain was individually shrink wrapped.

(And if people want the experience of individually shrink wrapped rice - well, that's what brown rice was invented for ....)

Poppy seeds? I know that poppies are something to do with opium, but it never would have occurred to be that a sprinkling of seeds could have such an effect.

I know that poppies are something to do with opium, but it never would have occurred to be that a sprinkling of seeds could have such an effect.

There are a few benign substances that can give a positive "result" for illegal drugs.

There are? Not that I’m ever likely to take a drugs test, but now I’m agog.