Buckets labeled as food-grade at Lowes stores

[Toblerone]

I was just at Lowes and saw that they are selling food-grade 5-gallon buckets for $4.55 and lids for $1.49.

[Cake O' Maple]

That price jump from their regular buckets makes me wonder just how much more the plastic costs, and if production costs are higher to keep things food-grade, or it they're jumping on the bandwagon with so many people storing foods for disasters or the end of the world as we know it.

Maybe I'm just too suspicious.

BTW, Rural King has food grade buckets (I contacted the mfr to be sure, as the mfr's website was not terribly clear), and their white buckets and lids ARE food-grade. Regularly buckets are $2.99, lids $2.29, but they go on sale periodically buckets $1.99, lids $1.49. Be aware that if you want to have them shipped, they'll only ship 5 buckets at the sale price, but the store had no problem w/ me going in and buying 40 off the shelf.

Oh, and the lids are snap-on, and easier to remove than those blasted things that need a special tool to remove. Perfect for sap collection w/ frequent dumping!

[Father & Son]

Check you local grocery stores with bakeries. I get them for free!

Jim

[NH/Pete]

Check you local grocery stores with bakeries. I get them for free!

Jim

Same here.

[Toblerone]

Check you local grocery stores with bakeries. I get them for free!
I've done that too, but I typically get only a few 4-gallon buckets with lids that don't quite match or fit right for some reason, that is if they even remember to save the lids for me. And I end up with several different styles that don't stack well and somehow all the lids get mismatched.

I like the Lowes buckets when I need one or two to replace a lost/broken bucket/lid or if I find a couple extra trees to tap. Also I just thought it was interesting, given our many food-grade discussions on this site, to see that a major home-improvement store noticed the market (home-brewers use them too I guess) and explicitly put "food-grade" labels on them.

[Cake O' Maple]

Check you local grocery stores with bakeries. I get them for free!

Jim

No local in-store bakeries except Walmart, and they now recycle them, not give them away. Other grocery stores have a central bakery further away than I'm willing to drive. :(

[Turtlecreek]

A friend of mine works at chef boyardee and I can get as many 5 gallon buckets as I want for free. As for the buckets I have on the trees I get the square ones they use in food service, I have another friend that works at geisinger medical center in the kitchen and get all,of them I can handle. So all in all I haven't naught a bucket in years.

[buckeye gold]

Someone tell why a new clean smooth surfaced plastic bucket can not be used as a sap bucket. I read on the dept of Agriculture's site that food grade was a non porous new product that has not held any non food contents. An example of new smooth plastic surface, was given. I paraphrased the statement it's not a quote. Maybe I missed something in the details. I wash mine in a light chlorine wash and rinse before use.

I notice the Lowes buckets say BPA free, maybe someone can explain that.

I would put the plastic buckets up against the old metal ones for cleanliness.

[rookie]

I use brand new not used for anything else buckets as well not "food grade" but it has the same recycling number as "food grade" i'm not concearned, i think its just a way to increase the costs

[CBOYER]

I notice the Lowes buckets say BPA free, maybe someone can explain that.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bisphenol_A

[buckeye gold]

Thanks for the Wiki link it was very informative. I looked at one of my Lowes buckets and then went to encore plastics web page for information. Encore makes the buckets for Lowes. They do not use BPA in their containers. They do state that their recycled buckets (eco-blend brand, black in color) are not food grade, but the Lowes buckets are not marked as "made from recycled material" and are not those buckets. Encore markets those as Eco-blend brand. It looks to me like the Lowes Buckets are good to use. However, after looking at Encores web page it might be better to buy direct from them, price and quality wise.

Below are answers from their Frequently Asked Questions.


Q. Can food be packaged in your containers?

A. Yes, the resin used in most of our containers has the FDA approval for storing and packaging of food products. However, this only applies to products made from virgin material and not from regrind material also known as Econo-Blend. It is also recommended that you purchase your food grade containers direct from Encore or a reputable distributor. We also suggest that you never use “used containers” for storing food products unless they were previously used for a food product.

Q. Are your containers food grade?

A. Yes, all of our containers are made from a virgin FDA approved resin except the Econo-Blend containers which are made from regrind material and are not food grade.

Q. What is the difference between your virgin and regrind material?

A. Besides the fact that regrind pails can not be used in the food industry, the biggest difference is pricing. Generally regrind pails are approximately 15% to 20% less than virgin material pails. However the drawback is that regrind pails are generally not as durable as pails made from a virgin material.

[maple flats]

Someone tell why a new clean smooth surfaced plastic bucket can not be used as a sap bucket. I read on the dept of Agriculture's site that food grade was a non porous new product that has not held any non food contents. An example of new smooth plastic surface, was given. I paraphrased the statement it's not a quote. Maybe I missed something in the details. I wash mine in a light chlorine wash and rinse before use.

I notice the Lowes buckets say BPA free, maybe someone can explain that.

I would put the plastic buckets up against the old metal ones for cleanliness.
Most buckets and trash cans are recycled plastic. To be food grade it must be virgin plastic since there is no way of ever knowing what was in it. The question is not how smooth but what the plastic has touched in it's lifetime. You would never want to use one that had plastic that held any number of nasties. Many can never be totally cleaned, the nasty permeates the pores. Yes, plastic is porous. A food grade label is a must.

[buckeye gold]

Maple Flats, did you read my last post about the encore buckets? They say their containers are made from virgin materials unless marked as the recycled brand which is also black in color and have the recycled emblem. They state all of their containers other than the eco*blend are food safe. I feel safe using the encore buckets that Lowes sells. The ones I bought have the proper markings for their food safe buckets.

It makes me wonder, does anyone know what all the tubing used is made of?

[Sugarbush Ridge]

I ask at restaurants especialy if they have a buffet and salad bar. Many of their items come in 4 gal square buckets especially boiled eggs. The buckets are all the same size so lids interchange without problems. If they don't have handles I use 1/8 rope and a piece of old garden hose. I've gotten 75 in just a few months just from one restaurant.

[mike z]

I remember a couple years back calling a plastic bucket manufacture with food grade questions. They said the buckets I was asking about were for incidental contact only and not meant for long term food storage. Mmmm. I reasoned that for collecting sap they should be ok. My tree hangers are AL.

[NH Maplemaker]

As it has been stated on this site a million times !! you are making a food product!! Your family, friends, your children. Also your paying customers eat it! Recycled means that they may of held oil, chemicals, animal wast! as maple flats said "any number of nasties" I don't call sap sitting in a bucket for three or four hours or sometimes longer incidental contract! Pay a little bit more and get the real food grade!! JimL.

[buckeye gold]

see next post for up to date information

[buckeye gold]

after all the discussion I found myself wondering if indeed these buckets from Lowes were food grade, so i wrote the company that makes them and got this reply: Responding to your inquiry regarding the pails Encore sells to Lowe’s, they are food safe. The white ones are actually produced from an FDA approved resin; however, the gray ones are safe for food as well. There is nothing in the gray color of the pails or lids that will transfer to any food stored in them. The triangle on the bottom with the “2” in it just indicates the type of material the pails are made of, in this case, it is HDPE.



Hope this helps!



Amy Wolf

Customer Service Specialist

Encore Plastics

319 Howard Drive

Sandusky, OH 44870

419-626-8000 ext. 114

419-626-8095 Fax

awolf@e-encore.com

I hope this information is helpful to everyone. That's the value of a forum like this, work out issues to make the industry better.

[adk1]

Nice! I am gonna buy 4 of the TSC pails. I beleive they are the same..But heck, I am only using them to transfer sap from my sap sacks to dump into the storage tank so I guess it wouldnt matter too much.

[Cake O' Maple]

after all the discussion I found myself wondering if indeed these buckets from Lowes were food grade, so i wrote the company that makes them and got this reply: Responding to your inquiry regarding the pails Encore sells to Lowe’s, they are food safe. The white ones are actually produced from an FDA approved resin; however, the gray ones are safe for food as well...

I didn't think this statement was right, but couldn't recall why--re-checked Lowe's online site for materials, and they state the gray buckets are made of recycled materials, which I understand can't be considered food-grade, so I wrote to Amy Wolf as well. Asked for clarification on the gray buckets due to being made of recycled materials, and this is the response I got today:

Hello Elizabeth,



Our white pails are produced from an FDA approved resin. Please use the white pails for your food application. Thank you.



Amy Wolf

Customer Service Specialist

Encore Plastics

319 Howard Drive

Sandusky, OH 44870

419-626-8000 ext. 114

419-626-8095 Fax

awolf@e-encore.com

[buckeye gold]

Thanks for the clarification. I did not even think to check the web page for specifications. It would be nice if the manufacturer would be accurate and correct in their response. This could be an issue for them, being inaccurate on something such as food use.

What are we to do, galvanized is definitely out and now aluminum is getting scrutiny, so the food grade plastic is all that is left. Now the next question, how many producers are buying holding tanks and head tanks from farm supply stores and are they buying food grade? Then there are all kinds of plastic pipe being used. It could turn into pandora's box. I wonder if any research has ever been done to show how plastics leech into food stuffs and how quickly this happens. I doubt cold sap would be very conductive for no longer than its in contact. However, that really doesn't matter, food grade is safest.