RPCs Archives - The Paper and Paperboard Packaging Environmental Council (PPEC)

Salmonella survives plastic crate washing test, transfers to fresh cucumber

Corrugated Boxes, Industry News, Life Cycle Analysis, Recycled Content, RPCs / John Mullinder

A scientific study just published in the international peer-review journal, Food Control, poses some serious questions about the sanitation of the re-usable plastic crates (RPCs) sometimes used to distribute fresh produce to retailers. The study shows how Salmonella can become established on RPCs and survive the typical sanitation cycles that are applied to decontaminate the […]

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Retailers can’t duck food safety issues when pushing growers to re-use crates

2 Comments / Recyclable, RPCs / John Mullinder

A third, more extensive testing of plastic crates used to ship fresh produce throughout Canada shows some handling improvements but still found sanitary issues such as high total aerobic and yeast and mould counts, and the presence of E. coli. Studies demonstrating inconsistent washing practices and biofilms surviving common industry cleaning methods had earlier led

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A moving (and puzzling) story about dead Toronto chickens

1 Comment / RPCs / John Mullinder

Chickens are not something we would normally write about. And, in fact, this little story has less to do with dead chickens than with how they journey across Toronto in the after-life before landing between our knives and forks. Let me explain. Until very recently in Toronto, fresh cut-up chickens were placed on foam trays

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Retailer hands container choice back to growers

RPCs, Uncategorized / John Mullinder

A major produce retailer in Canada has decided that the growers who supply it with fresh fruit and vegetables should choose which container to deliver their produce in, the traditional corrugated box or a reusable plastic crate, rather than the retailer telling them which one to use. This is a significant development in the crate

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