Worthwhile to wash jars straight from the factory?

[omnimirage]

I'm buying my plastic and glass containers in bulk from a warehouse distributing company. I asked them whether I should wash the jars before storing honey in them, and they recommended for me to give them a rinse with warm water in case bits of plastic residue or whatever mistakenly founded their way in the jar.

It's no problem to rinse them, but drying them is a pain as it's imperative to remove all the moisture, otherwise the honey might ferment. I got a couple hundred jars of honey that I need to fill with honey. I figure wiping with a towel isn't sufficient in removing all the water, so I've been drip drying them. I can't just place them flat down, as the moisture then can't escape. Nor can I just leave them in the sun faced up as dust or whatever might drop into them. I've had to do creative things for such, lately I've been placing chop sticks underneath the jars, and placing them face down so that water can drip onto a paper towel underneath. With the amount of jars that I need to wash this time around, I literally cannot fit them all in my kitchen, and my house mates were annoyed enough as is with me taking up all the space for a day or two to let them drip dry. I'm guessing I'm going to have to let them dry outside and work out a way that bugs or dust or whatever doesn't wind up in them, maybe I could lay down cotton towels, with the paper towels and chop sticks on top.

It's just a pain to do and I'm left wondering if it's even needed. I figure the factory would of course recommend such in order to avoid me blaming them that there was something left over in the jar. Is it worth washing them with warm water? Is there a better way of drying hundreds of jars?

[little john]

Cleanliness/food hygiene is not about being "worthwhile" - it's a legal requirement in all developed countries.

A packaging material may contaminate food if it is not clean and free from foreign matter.  Therefore packaging materials must be protected from contamination before they are used.  Contamination may occur from dust, dirt and pests. A packaging material that may be contaminated must not be used in contact with food.

Example
A food business is storing packaging material for use in contact with food in a shed at the back of the premises. The shed is not clean nor vermin proof. The food business needs to find a more appropriate place to store the packaging material, for example a food storage area.
https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/publications/documents/complete_safefood.pdf

LJ

[Jim134]

The local health laws were I live.. You do not need to wash new containers... If you do wash new containers Such as  Plastic.. Most likely it will never stand up to a process..  of washing...
  All I can say check your local  Health and food laws..


                    BEE HAPPY Jim 134 

[BeeMaster2]

I like to buy the jars that come with the lids on. They keeps contaminants out and all you have are material that have been manufactured under high heat and then pot together and sealed.
Jim

[omnimirage]

The ones I buy are tightly packaged with plastic wrappers, without the lids on they're sold separately.

The question is to me would these factory fresh new containers be considered contaminated?

[tjc1]

I was going to suggest loading your dishwasher full and running it on the shorter prewash and then the heat drying option... I would guess that you could likely do 60 to 100 at a time depending on the size. Of course, you have to have a dishwasher... or a friend with a dishwasher...

[little john]

The ones I buy are tightly packaged with plastic wrappers, without the lids on they're sold separately.

The question is to me would these factory fresh new containers be considered contaminated?

As I see it - you don't know what the storage conditions have been like within the warehouse - or between manufacture and initial packaging.  All it would take is one inspector's visit to spot an 'unclean' jar - or far worse, some kind of infection which could be linked (even indirectly) to your premises - and you'd be in deep poo.  Why take that risk ?

I'm reading that washing and rinsing isn't the issue for you - it's removing the moisture afterwards ? 

Thoughts: use a dishwasher - or - place a couple of dozen washed and rinsed jars at a time (right way up) in an oven set at around 125 deg C.  Or - don't bother: if you wash, then drain well, and then shake-out any remaining drops - how much water remains as a percentage of the honey which is about to fill the jar ?  It must be an incredibly tiny amount - and thus negligible ?  Unless your honey is right on the margin, I can't see such a tiny trace of moisture making much difference.

LJ

[Jim134]

Thoughts: use a dishwasher - or - place a couple of dozen washed and rinsed jars at a time (right way up) in an oven set at around 125 deg C.

    Look like you may have missed something ??? For how many minutes you leave   Plastic containers in the oven ?   Are you actually using a commercial dishwasher ??

             BEE HAPPY Jim 134

[little john]

Thoughts: use a dishwasher - or - place a couple of dozen washed and rinsed jars at a time (right way up) in an oven set at around 125 deg C.

    Look like you may have missed something ??? For how many minutes you leave   Plastic containers in the oven ?   Are you actually using a commercial dishwasher ??

             BEE HAPPY Jim 134

Missed something ?  Only if a reader is nit-picking ...

They were just a few 'off the cuff' thoughts - ideas voiced out loud intended for (hopefully helpful) consideration - and not comprehensive recommendations or detailed instructions.  BTW - plastic containers are not normally called 'jars'.

I notice that no-one else has taken issue with the above post during the last week.
LJ

[Jim134]

Would it make you feel better if I called them all containers???

        BEE HAPPY Jim 134 

[UrbisAgricola]

I towel dry while they are still warm/hot then let sit a minute or two to air dry further.  I'm sure that people will disagree with me, but if the honey is at a good moisture level, I seriously doudt any moisture left after towel drying is going to be the tipping point for fermentation.

[Acebird]

Unless the jars are used I see no purpose in washing them prior to filling.  The jars should be packed into a cardboard box with mouth down.  Although I have received plastic jars in a plastic bag probably because I don't buy many.  I would rather see someone set up a blow gun with filtered air to hit each container prior to filling then actually washing the container.  Washing and wiping out containers can actually bring in more contaminants then doing nothing.  I wouldn't vote for having the lids on either because that could easily cause condensation on the inside.  Moisture is what all living things need to grow.  Germs are everywhere.  They are harmless until they get access to moisture.  If the jar is dry prior to filling with honey there is no problem but if something had a chance to grow prior to filling that may not be the case.  It would not be for certain that it would be bad but it is not for certain that it would be good either.

[Dallasbeek]

Unless the jars are used I see no purpose in washing them prior to filling.  The jars should be packed into a cardboard box with mouth down.  Although I have received plastic jars in a plastic bag probably because I don't buy many.  I would rather see someone set up a blow gun with filtered air to hit each container prior to filling then actually washing the container.  Washing and wiping out containers can actually bring in more contaminants then doing nothing.  I wouldn't vote for having the lids on either because that could easily cause condensation on the inside.  Moisture is what all living things need to grow.  Germs are everywhere.  They are harmless until they get access to moisture.  If the jar is dry prior to filling with honey there is no problem but if something had a chance to grow prior to filling that may not be the case.  It would not be for certain that it would be bad but it is not for certain that it would be good either.

I concur and add that honey is reputed to be anti-everything, so unless you have stored them in a really dirty place, the jars are almost certain to be clean.  As for having caps on, the caps I get with jars have a sealing thing inside that seals the jar when tightened down, so if you put the caps on the empty jar, you've ruined the seal

[BeeMaster2]

The jars that have the lids on are glass canning jars. The ones with the seals in the cap are plastic.
Jim

[Dallasbeek]

The jars that have the lids on are glass canning jars. The ones with the seals in the cap are plastic.
Jim

I don't use glass canning jars.  I use glass jars made for 1 or 2 pounds of honey.  They both have seals in the lids.  I guess there are other sizes as well - 1/2 pound, 5 pound, etc.

[Dallasbeek]

The one- quart Ball canning jars hold about 2 1/2 pound of honey.  Those are good with chunks of honey in them.

[Acebird]

so if you put the caps on the empty jar, you've ruined the seal

Only if the jar went through a canning process.  For honey you can reuse the lids a number of times.  No different than any metal honey cap.  It is the heat of the canning process that takes the elasticity out of the elastic seal on a canning lid.  I think the net weight of a quart of honey is closer to 2.7 pounds.  I write on my jars 2.6 pounds.

[Dallasbeek]

I'm referring to the thin tamper-proof plastic seal that comes inside lids for containers (glass or plastic) bought from Dadant or other suppliers.  It's like the tamper-proof seal on OTC vitamins and such.  It's not a vacuum seal like a canning lid.  Once you tighten the lid (plastic in my experience) onto the container, the seal is fixed to the container to show no one has removed any of the product or added anything to it.  I suppose it also prevents leakage in transit.

[Ben Framed]

An older topic but interesting. What are your thoughts on this?

[Lesgold]

New jars that I buy come wrapped in clear shrink plastic. The mouth of the jars are totally sealed and foreign matter can?t get into them. It?s a really good system. With that being said, I still visually check each jar before filling. With second hand jars I remove labels, wash off glue and give the jars a quick rinse. When the jars are basically clean, I wash them inside and out with hot water and some detergent. After that they are washed and basically sterilised in the dish washer. They come out really hot but dry quickly due to the heat. They are then sparkling and very clean. New lids are then usually added to the jar and they are stored sealed until they are required for use. I use those jars for door sales and family use.