To think putting raw meat packaging in dishwasher is crazy?!!

[DrSeuss84]

We went to stay with family this Christmas. Whilst emptying the dishwasher I noticed an empty bacon packet and mentioned it thinking it had just fallen in by accident. Turns out no…. They put all plastic packets including from raw meat through dishwasher before recycling it. Is that thing?! Is it just me that thinks it is a huge Health hazard? On one occasion I opened it and there were three empty packets up with all the cups. Im really interested to know what other people think.

This

So when your clean recycling is crushed in the recycling truck and mixed with your neighbours dirty recycling, and the cardboard is all mushed up with bits of broken glass, they are somehow going to separate out the unrinsed milk bottles from the rinsed ones?

Why would that be a problem? It’s going to be shredded up, melted down and reprocessed.

Strange

It's not a health hazard as it's all washed with hot water and detergent, it's bizarre though, just a quick rinse for me if it's a tin of something

Huh, I've never thought to do that and it's fucking genius!

Cheers OP, tonight's mince packet will be going in the dishwasher!

Is domestic meat packaging designed to be washed in the dishwasher? I don't think it is. The only plastic that should going in the dishwasher is plastic that has been tested to be safe to be washed at high temperatures:

https://finish.co.uk/blogs/ultimate-dishwashing-guide/plastic#:~:text=If%20a%20plastic%20bottle%20or,clean%20or%20sanitising%20cycles%201.

I think it's unecessary and the packaging should be put safely with the non recyclable rubbish.

I think different areas of the UK have different recycling schemes. Where I live, all recycling is mixed in one bin, so we have to wash the tins and plastics otherwise it'll contaminate the paper and cardboard, which then can't be recycled.

I think if you have a scheme that separates paper / card from plastics and tins then washing is less essential as they can be cleaned as part of the recycling process.

Well I guess if you only ever run your dishwasher when it is absolutely 100% full with bowls etc you have a point.
But realistically, most people don't.
I run our dishwasher once a day, overnight whilst we are on our cheap electricity tarrif, and there's still space for a few empty yoghurt pots, meat trays etc in it. If I didn't put them in and instrad waited for it to fill completely with pots and pans I might save one load every few weeks and I'd probably use more water and electricity overall as the plates etc would either need to be rinsed first or be washed on a longer cycle if they'd been waiting longer to be washed. Plus I would need to own more stuff as it wouldn't always be clean when I needed it.
I doubt there are many people who always wait until their machines are full to capacity, and if there is room at the end of the day it's far better to put some plastic into the space than leave it empty.

I’m interested to know where these people live if their meat and fish packaging gets recycled. Most local authority areas accept plastic bottles and pretty much nothing else.

Either way, the dishwasher is by far the safest way to wash anything that’s been in contact with raw meat. There is no hygiene risk. Rinsing it first is pointless and is also much more likely to result in cross-contamination of sinks, surfaces, workshops and your hands. Your dishwasher washes things at a far higher temperature and for far longer than you ever could and kills off germs much more effectively.

I can’t recycle meat packaging where I live but I stick cans and jars in the dishwasher quite frequently before recycling. It stops my recycling bin smelling revolting and makes it less likely to attract flies/wasps/cats/foxes. I could rinse them in the sink, but if I’m putting full load of dishes on anyway, why would I waste time and water rinsing out a jam jar or a tuna tin separately by hand?

It's not a health hazard.
It is mental.

@ManateeFair in Norfolk we can recycle rigid plastic trays etc
https://www.norfolkrecycles.com/bins-at-home/my-recycling-bin/

Not mental if you happen to have a bit of extra space in the dishwasher. We put ours on most evenings and if there's room will put in plastic meat packaging to avoid using extra water to wash it separately.

Not a health hazard as others have said. It is, however, most odd.

You absolutely do not have to do that. Everything gets washed at the processing plant. They're wasting energy and therefore defeating the purpose of recycling.

Are you saying you DONT wash / rinse any of your recycling ?

@ManateeFair Scandinavia

I wouldn't put plastic into the dishwasher for health reasons.

I do find it absurd that I wash my rubbish these days!

I do this too. Just made sense, council want clean recycling, dw goes on anyway 🤷🏻‍♀️

What health reasons?

That is weird. I just put it in the sink and it gets rinsed while I wash my hands/wash fruit and veg so it doesn't waste water. The recycling doesn't need to be clean enough to eat off.

But why do you think that’s a lower risk option? There’s a risk of splashing the theoretical bugs on the surrounding areas. In a dishwasher it’s all contained and any bugs are zapped with hot water and dishwasher detergent.

I put curry containers in the dishwasher before recycling, meat consumption I just rinse off first.

@BIossomtoes

The plastic heats up in the dishwasher and releases BPA type chemicals which are harmful to human life. To be fair, we own no plastic 'dishes' anyway.

https://www.consumerreports.org/dishwashers/things-to-never-put-in-dishwasher//*

I'm not saying that, I may rinse in the sink or put the odd jar or tin in the dishwasher but I certainly wouldn't put meat trays and packing in the dishwasher as the OP is suggesting but there really is no need> Councils have different policies I get that but we now where we live they don't say it has to be washed. I think that is a throw back to when recycling first came out.