Keep like items together when packing grocery bags.
Credit: Erik Dungan | ©sxc.hu/Erik Dungan
There was a time when packing a grocery bag properly was common sense. Those days are long gone. Grocery store cashiers, if they pack grocery bags at all, today are accustomed to packing three or four items in a plastic bag and depositing bag upon bag in the customer's shopping cart. These plastic grocery bags have been part of our culture for decades now and have obliterated the art of properly packing a grocery bag. Now that many people are switching to reusable cloth grocery bags in the name of environmentalism, it's time to reclaim that lost art.
So how do you properly pack a grocery bag, whether you pack the grocery bag yourself or encourage the store cashier to do so? There are three general principles that govern proper packing of grocery bags: pack like items together, pack each bag from bottom to top with heavy items first and then lighter items, and distribute the heaviest items among several bags to avoid packing any one bag that is too heavy to carry.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Place Heaviest Items at the Bottom
When packing grocery bags, prepare to have several bags open and ready for packing at once. As items come off the conveyor belt, choose the heaviest items to pack first - cans, jars, jugs of milk and laundry detergent, for example- and place these items in the bottom of the grocery bags.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Distribute Heavy Items Among Several Bags
To avoid having some bags that are too heavy to easily carry, distribute the heavy items among several different grocery bags.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Stand Boxes Up
When packing a grocery bag, stand boxes up inside the bag. Standing the boxes gives the grocery bags form and makes them easier to handle. It maximizes the use of grocery bag space, enabling you to use less grocery bags total than if items are tossed into the grocery bag carelessly. Standing the boxes when packing grocery bags also protects the contents of the boxes.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Pack Frozen Items Together
So how do you properly pack a grocery bag, whether you pack the grocery bag yourself or encourage the store cashier to do so? There are three general principles that govern proper packing of grocery bags: pack like items together, pack each bag from bottom to top with heavy items first and then lighter items, and distribute the heaviest items among several bags to avoid packing any one bag that is too heavy to carry.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Place Heaviest Items at the Bottom
When packing grocery bags, prepare to have several bags open and ready for packing at once. As items come off the conveyor belt, choose the heaviest items to pack first - cans, jars, jugs of milk and laundry detergent, for example- and place these items in the bottom of the grocery bags.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Distribute Heavy Items Among Several Bags
To avoid having some bags that are too heavy to easily carry, distribute the heavy items among several different grocery bags.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Stand Boxes Up
When packing a grocery bag, stand boxes up inside the bag. Standing the boxes gives the grocery bags form and makes them easier to handle. It maximizes the use of grocery bag space, enabling you to use less grocery bags total than if items are tossed into the grocery bag carelessly. Standing the boxes when packing grocery bags also protects the contents of the boxes.
To Properly Pack a Grocery Bag, Pack Frozen Items Together
Comments
i am a bagger
(Guest)
(Guest)
10/03/2009
I try to bag groceries according to those tips. I never like putting the bread on the bottom. Also I let the customer know where their bread and eggs are too. Also, I let customers know I put their cleaning stuff in a different bag.
michael voisinet
(Guest)
(Guest)
05/05/2008
one more thing that i want to point out is:some times you dont have the boxes in which to build up the sidewalls.because each order is not exactly the same.and some customers just buy cans and staple goods and thats it.you would have to improvise and devise a way in which to bag each order.bagging groceries is predicated on one thing and one thing only:GOOD OLD FASHIONED COMMON SENSE.and jewel has this video and says you should build walls and fill them up and fill them out.sure you put your boxes on the sides and cans in the middle but that doesnt exactly work for each order.the video is only used a guideline only.some customers get really infuriated if you overload their grocery bags.so dont do it.make sure that your weight distribution is even in each bag so it wont be so heavy and so cumbersome for elderly and disabled customers to carry.
michael voisinet
(Guest)
(Guest)
05/05/2008
one thing you must never ever do is pack the bananas in with the hamburger of the ground beef ever!!yuck!!you must keep those items totally seperated to help avoid boutchulism.when i was working one day at jewel food store in michigan city i packed the hamburger in one bag and the bananas in another to avoid contamination.then darlene adams my old service manager totally admonished me for it.she told me that i can put the bananas in with the hamburger because it was wrapped and that i wont hurt it.then she told me that she was going to retrain me.and darlene indicated to me that a customer complained that she had to carry 7 bags home.but i quit before she even had the opportunity to retrain me.
michael voisinet
(Guest)
(Guest)
04/10/2008
when i worked at jewel food store here in michigan city in.we always watched a video on how to bag groceries.this is what you do when you pack a plastic grocery bag:1.build walls.what i mean by buildings walls is to put 2 tall boxes one on each side and place your cans in the middle to avoid them tumbling down.2.using your cans as a base and put a filler item such as sugar or flour on top of your cans and place the crushables like bread or chips at the very top.3.put your glass items in the middle of the bag first and place your boxes between them one on each side to avoid them getting broken.4.fill them up and fill them out.always remember to fill out the bag to help it retain its shape.5.put all your soap and chemical items in a seperate bag to help avoid leakage and thus contaminate the other grocery items.6.put all your meat items together into one seperate bag to help avoid contamination.7.place all poultry items such as chicken in a seperate bag to help avoid botchulism.8.plac
I hate it when the baggers pack the stuff the wrong way and it's either too heavy or it's completely unbalanced. Maybe grocery stores should have all baggers read this.
Great article. I loved your advice, especially the one about starting with several open bags. This makes packing the items faster and easier. I just never thought of starting with several open bags. After reading your article I will definitely be bagging groceries your way. I also hate to find an expensive magazine ruined by moisture from milk, frozen items, etc. Your article should be posted at every checkout counter at every grocery store. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent advice Carol! I cannot stand when they throw a gallon of milk, with condensation all over it, on top of my magazines! Those magazines are not cheap man! $4.00 for a gossip mag, and to find it ruined at the bottom of my bag kills me!
Good reference tool
Great article. I get so peeved when someone packs my health and beauty products in with my Tyson chicken. I have started to use the Self check more and more so that I don't have to worry about it :)
Im faxing this to the local Jewels
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