Yet another rant.

Yes, there will be alternatives but for many of us a supermarket meal is a quick and easy solution.

Or it should be.

I would not class myself as elderly but I am approaching that period in my life. However, I am finding it increasingly impossible to access some of these 'Ready Meals'.

Just peel back the film lid and stir once you have pierced the lid and cooked it for the required time.

Peel back the film. My arse. The outer rim then just peeles away, leaving the rest of the contents still inside the packaging.

Hacking at it with a Claw Hammer can be a solution but not always advisable.

Don’t get me started on those sealed (so-called resealable) packages of bacon!

The whole thing needs rethinking ........single use plastics should be recyclable or they shouldn't exist!

Rant over!

Every home needs one of these. Spot the design fail

Do you own a knife?

Yes, but I removed the end of my thumb attempting to sort out a Chicken Madeira with Mushroom Rice.

Agree with all this, non-openable packaging is far too common these days but don’t get me started on tinned corn beef!

In Hong Kong, each individual strawberry/grape/apple is/was wrapped.

Tinned Corned Beef.

Likely to lose a limb or two.

I bet leaving the house is a real trauma some of you.

CleggHall wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 9:48 am

Agree with all this, non-openable packaging is far too common these days but don’t get me started on tinned corn beef!

SPAM is another

The biggest lie in retail - Peel and Reseal.

Dressinggown wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 10:21 am

Tinned Corned Beef.

Likely to lose a limb or two.

The secret to safely opening corned beef, is to take the paper off the tin 1st. Rolling the tin and paper onto the opener is a disaster waiting to happen.

Clovius Boofus wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 11:29 am

I bet leaving the house is a real trauma some of you.

It's slightly easier than trying to make a cheap meal.

Perhaps not, depending where you live.

And then there’s the plastic they use for bags of rice, lentils and so on. It’s a sort of brittle less flexible plastic that you need to open with the care of a surgeon or the bag immediately rips from top to bottom spilling the contents everywhere. They only seem to use it for bags where the spilt contents take an age to clear up.

Perhaps it's time to catch and eat anything that vaguely move.

Old Aged Pensioners or kids on public transport ?

The plastic containers that you put in the microwave are hotter than the Sun when you attempt to retrieve them, yet the contents are barely lukewarm.

Is there anything more dangerous this side of Africa than a tin of Tuna with a peel back lid?

Just seen the Corned Beef reference, similar.

Tripe, Pigs Trotters, Sheep Brains and any sort of offal could be the answer. Just wack into a pan of boiling water.

I'm sure that the jury might be in a bit of a stalemate over this proposal.

Possibly not. Scorching hands is the only way to go..

You need at least a gallon of vinegar for Tripe.

Pickles wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 9:57 am

In Hong Kong, each individual strawberry/grape/apple is/was wrapped.

I've seen individually wrapped bananas over here......sheer madness!

equinox wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 4:31 pm

Is there anything more dangerous this side of Africa than a tin of Tuna with a peel back lid?

Not if you ask my missus.

She's got a massive scar on her hand from trying to feed a stray cat a tin of tuna when she was ******

What about manual potato peelers? Guaranteed to take skin off potatoes and your hands.

karatekid wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 7:01 pm

What about manual potato peelers? Guaranteed to take skin off potatoes and your hands.

What do you mean by 'manual potato peelers'? Is there an automatic variety?

How do you take skin off with a potato peeler???

Rowls wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 7:03 pm

What do you mean by 'manual potato peelers'? Is there an automatic variety?

How do you take skin off with a potato peeler???

Fish shops have machines where you pour potatoes in one end, and chips come out of the other.

dougcollins wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 03, 2025 7:05 pm

Fish shops have machines where you pour potatoes in one end, and chips come out of the other.

Yes but surely nobody has one of these at home???

I've found scissors work better than trying to peel. I just cut straight through the film and it saves the frustration. Still ridiculous though – packaging should be easy to open, not a mini workout

Taffy on the wing wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 02, 2025 9:37 pm

The whole thing needs rethinking ........single use plastics should be recyclable or they shouldn't exist ! Rant over!

Asda, Tesco, Co-op and Sainsburys all accept soft plastics for recycling, however the last documentary I saw on the subject put ten tracking devices on bags and most ended up in Poland being used as fuel in a cement works. That said, better that than it going to land-fill ...

Clarets4me wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 05, 2025 7:57 am

Asda, Tesco, Co-op and Sainsburys all accept soft plastics for recycling, however the last documentary I saw on the subject put ten tracking devices on bags and most ended up in Poland being used as fuel in a cement works. That said, better that than it going to land-fill ...

Yeah, at least it's being reused, unlike all the so-called recycling plastic we send to some countries, where it ends up in illegal dumps, causing environmental damage to land, rivers and our seas.

Idea for a TV programme:

The Great British Supermarket Food Packaging Challenge

A group of contestants (celebrities?) attempt to open foodstuffs without the aid of knives or scissors. Presented by Vernon Kaye.

Presented by Venison Cock ?

The worst culprit is Morrisons. Heaven forbid you don't microwave and use the recommended oven cooking instructions, they fail to also advise that when taking it out of the oven, the plastic container will either soften to the point that its impossible to pick up without turning it inside out and therefore pushing the contents out of the container or it becomes so brittle that it cracks from just a slight knock on the oven door.

Over here they now do bacon on a flat piece of card, with one layer of plastic coating the board, and then another over the bacon, sealing it in. You then peel the plastic off and recycle each part easily.

Can't possibly imagine why you haven't got similar innovation there.....

Once you have 'cooked' your 'Finest' Prawn Linguine in the microwave please don't tell me that you remove it with your bare hands.

Oven gloves only means some form of insurance claim on your kitchen floor although your cat might prefer it for a pack of Felix.

What people seem to miss is that this all came in after there was a spate of food tampering attacks at supermarkets. Like the pressurised caps they are made to be tamperproof.

Clarets4me wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 05, 2025 7:57 am

Asda, Tesco, Co-op and Sainsburys all accept soft plastics for recycling, however the last documentary I saw on the subject put ten tracking devices on bags and most ended up in Poland being used as fuel in a cement works. That said, better that than it going to land-fill ...

Apart from the toxins released when it's burned.......it's a massive global problem.
The latest Attenborough movie shows many of the reasons why we need to act & quickly.