Ban on re-using jam jars

Mart_got_hives · Oct 12, 2012

Lots of stories this week about jam makers angry at an EU ruling saying they can't reuse jam jars if they sell their product. Here's one such story:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ads-EU-fines-threat-reusing-old-jam-jars.html

Does this also go for beekeepers reusing honey jars?

VEG · Oct 12, 2012

Yes it applies to honey jars as well.

Cazza · Oct 12, 2012

I don't think most of the members of my bee club are going to be taking any notice!
Cazza

itma · Oct 12, 2012

Has been discussed previously - woven through the "Honey Price" thread, starting near the bottom of this page http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2810&page=5

Der Alte Fritz · Oct 12, 2012

Which is exactly the attitude that the French will take, the Italians will ignore it, the Germans publish it and then ignore it and the Dutch will not worry.

It only becomes a problem if you cause food poisoning which is unlikely with honey.

priono · Oct 12, 2012

May i ask you how you sterilise your jars before filling? steam? oven? waterbath?

itma · Oct 12, 2012

Der Alte Fritz said:
...
It only becomes a problem if you cause food poisoning which is unlikely with honey.

The rules say they are there to deal with stuff seeping or leaching out of reused packaging.
And errr, that's as likely with used glass and honey as it is with new glass and honey. Less likely than me winning the lottery without buying a ticket.

The risks we need to be aware of are from cracks, chips and even scratches. All those we can spot and reject during our 100% inspections during and following our sanitisation procedures. Even with new jars.

Don't let the Daily Wail get you into a panic about bureaucrats - especially foreign European ones!

Erichalfbee · Oct 12, 2012

Yes, blah blah blah....look out for the reused jars police

priono said:
May i ask you how you sterilise your jars before filling? steam? oven? waterbath?

I used to put them through a hot dishwasher cycle but use an oven now.

itma · Oct 12, 2012

priono said:
May i ask you how you sterilise your jars before filling? steam? oven? waterbath?

See http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=19600 for a recent sterilisation discussion.

mills · Oct 12, 2012

There's more clarification here... tabloid-watch.blogspot[DOT]co.uk/2012/10/ec-labels-ban-on-re-using-jam-jars.html

ShaneR · Oct 12, 2012

We were discussing this the other day and a friend had been listening to a discussion on the radio and they were saying it is part of food packaging regulations, mainly to prevent inappropriate plastic packaging. But of course someone queried it for jars and they are covered by the regs. But each local authority can apply the rules in different ways and the general consensus was that the food hygiene officers wouldn't be too concerned by glass as its safe and stable, unlike some plastics.

keith pierce · Oct 12, 2012

How would they possable be able to tell if you had reused a jar, after been washed and a new label been put on

Poly Hive · Oct 12, 2012

Night vision cameras.

Stealth sink patrols.

The bribed neighbours.

Oh dear they are out to get us..

PH

johnandyrob · Oct 12, 2012

Der Alte Fritz said:
Which is exactly the attitude that the French will take, the Italians will ignore it, the Germans publish it and then ignore it and the Dutch will not worry.

It only becomes a problem if you cause food poisoning which is unlikely with honey.

Basically the rest of the E.U. will ignore it and beekeepers in this country will be hounded and told it is the right thing to do. There will be lots of money spent making sure we comply while the rest ignore it. The same as what happens with every other rule made by Europe.

REDWOOD · Oct 12, 2012

This means that a pub will have to give a new glass for every customer, must be some EU member has shares in a bottle factory, has the world gone made, we dont have to go back to far and all bottles had a deposit on them and where returned for cleaning and re using, then they where land fill, now they are recycled and crushed and sold back to bottle companies, who is making a profit on this. I believe if they want my class bottles or jars they will have to pay for it.

fincaazul · Oct 13, 2012

Mart_got_hives said:
Lots of stories this week about jam makers angry at an EU ruling saying they can't reuse jam jars if they sell their product. Here's one such story:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ads-EU-fines-threat-reusing-old-jam-jars.html

Does this also go for beekeepers reusing honey jars?

Does this mean that I cannot reuse saucepans, plates, knives and forks or anything connected with food? Very expensive if that is so.

jenkinsbrynmair · Oct 13, 2012

Mart_got_hives said:
Lots of stories this week about jam makers angry at an EU ruling saying they can't reuse jam jars if they sell their product. Here's one such story:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ads-EU-fines-threat-reusing-old-jam-jars.html

Does this also go for beekeepers reusing honey jars?

Hmm - EU; Daily mail - what a combination eh? the only difference between the mail and another popular demised tabloid (the sport) is that in one the tits write the stories.

Der Alte Fritz · Oct 13, 2012

fincaazul said:
Does this mean that I cannot reuse saucepans, plates, knives and forks or anything connected with food? Very expensive if that is so.

It is all about a concept called the "chain of custody".

The idea is that should anything go wrong, like you find a mouse at the bottle of your honey jar ( a lady recently found half a mouse in her Tesco ham sandwich) they can then chase the trail back to the culprit. However this is really geared to mass production and not the little old lady making jam in her kitchen. But where do youdraw the line? There are lots of quite small food manufacturers operating in small industrial units - they should be covered and so why not some WI type who maybe produces 100s of jars of jam in a year?

In all these things it is the application of Common Sense by the Thought Police that is required but it only takes one job's worth to make the system break down. :sifone:

VEG · Oct 13, 2012

There are also lots of jars in garages with turps and who knows what else in them. These are the type of jars they dont want getting re used which makes total sense.
Once the jar has left the packer they have no control over what has been put in the jar.

enrico · Oct 13, 2012

VEG said:
There are also lots of jars in garages with turps and who knows what else in them. These are the type of jars they dont want getting re used which makes total sense.
Once the jar has left the packer they have no control over what has been put in the jar.

I never use jars I am given. They go straight into recycling for that reason. I use jars to wash brushes and am sure others do too. Let them get broken up and made into something new I say!!!

Ban on re-using jam jars

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