Flash in the Pan

There’s a lot to recommend the Premier food container line from Rubbermaid – you can heat them in a microwave, the smooth inside surface doesn’t take on food stains (think tomato sauce) the way many containers do, and it’s absolutely clear, so you can get a better sense of the state of your leftovers.

But I find that I just can’t warm to them. They use a type of plastic that is rigid and hard and the company claims that it won’t crack or warp over time, though it will take longer to see if that’s true. I know it’s an issue of psychological perception, but I can’t help getting over the feeling that they are brittle.

The only semi-malleable part is the top. It does provide a secure lock. Nevertheless, there is a feature of being able to attach the lid to the container’s base for convenient storage that I find rather silly. The rationale is that consumers complain about losing lids, and by attaching the lid to the bottom of the container, you can always find it. Maybe the people at Rubbermaid have cabinets with 3 feet of space between shelves, but everyone I know stores containers one inside the other. You can’t do that with the lids attached – and you’re going to need to detach them when washing, and that’s where they often get separated.

Then there is the issue of the type of plastic and whether it’s safe. I know the FDA claims that all rated food grade plastics are safe, and I know that a number of university researchers have stated that there’s nothing wrong with them. And yet I keep seeing reference to studies that many of the plastics can leach chemicals, particularly if heated. Some of the sites claim that it’s only certain types of the plastics, identified by the number on them. (The Premier line is made of type 7 – often on the warning lists.) Other web pages say that there is no safe plastic.

I come down on the side that safe is better than sorry, so heat foods in glass or ceramic that is designed to withstand microwaves. We’ll use the test Premier containers the company sent for review, but I’m not sure that we’ll make the same choice when it comes time to replace them. They also aren’t cheap, compared to other plastic food containers. The sizes range from 1.25 cups to 14 cups, with prices $2.49 to $8.99.

Labels: container, product, review, Rubbermaid