I’ve mentioned that when we buy dried food in bulk, we store them in buckets lined with garbage bags. Since many garbage bags are sprayed with pesticides, this isn’t a good thing to do unless you know the brand you’re using hasn’t been sprayed.
I downplayed this concern for a while because I didn’t want to think of potentially having to throw away any food we had stored in this way, but finally decided to be on the safe side and check the status of the garbage bags we use. I called the company – you can find the phone number on the back or bottom of the box – and asked them this question. I told them I knew they weren’t recommended for food, but wanted to know in the event that they were used for food, if the food would be contaminated by any pesticidal or similar sprays. They told me a customer service representative would call me back later in the day, and she did.
Then she took all of the information down – where I bought the bags, the code on the bottom – and told me she’d have to check with the factory in China where the bags are manufactured to check this out. Sure enough, the next day, I got another call back. She had called the manufacturers and the manager there checked out the details for the bags we use. It turns out, happily for us, that these bags have no sprays, and are fine to use for dry foods, though they don’t recommend it.
The bags we use aren’t a name brand – they’re called Tuf and are sold at Walgreens. If you’re been thinking of buying any kind of food in bulk and storing it in the way that I mentioned we store ours, take a few minutes to make a call and verify that your garbage bags are okay for this. I was pleased with how helpful and receptive the people I spoke with were, and it gave me peace of mind to know that what we’ve been using is fine.
Avivah
I got large grain storage buckets from our local mill. They have screw-on lids and were quite inexpensive, maybe $8. They easily hold 25 pounds, probably as much as 35. In 10 years I’ve never had bugs… just another possibility. 🙂
The concern with possible infestation is that there could already be eggs in the grains when you put them in the buckets, and in that case, it doesn’t matter how tight your seal is. The buckets I use do have a tight seal, but I line them because it helps us keep things neater and it’s a second layer just in case someone (it’s usually kids taking things in and out) doesn’t close the bucket tightly (we twist the top of the bag closed before putting the lid back on.
I toss our grains in the freezer for a couple of days before it’s stored. So far, so good. 🙂
I have a problem with freezing things before I store them, because of the amounts that I buy, and the limited amount of freezer space I have (and it’s usually filled up as soon as I get back from shopping with perishables). That’s what’s so nice about the winter – I can store them on my basement steps for a few days and everything gets frozen. At this time of year, it would take me days to freeze everything, since I’d have to do small batches at a time.
Yes, we’re cutting down from 4 freezers when we move. 🙂
My kids keep telling me we need to get another freezer, but I absolutely refuse to get another device that uses electricity! That’s why I’ve looked into other ways to preserve food, so I can still stock up on good deals and still have our one freezer be enough!
Btw, are you still looking into moving to this area?