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Two Letters Re: Sources for Food Grade Buckets

Greetings JR-
Regarding the discussion on the mother lode of seed buckets: Be aware that seeds meant to be placed in the ground are almost always treated by industrial seed firms with a pesticide that is designed to protect the seed and give it a greater chance of making it out of the ground from such enemies as rodents, weeds and fungus' etc. For the same reason you don't want to eat seed grains if they are treated as seed materials, you might want to make sure that you are able to adequately wash or remove the pesticides that might still remain in the buckets. Oftentimes the seed treatment will be [with a dye that is] a bright neon colored orange or reddish color. If possible contact the seed company on the bucket label and find out what the pesticide is...If possible -educate yourself by reading the warning label and you might have second thoughts -but that decision is yours to make. Your local county extension agent can also be a great help if you have questions.

FYI, our area of Idaho/Oregon is one the seed growing capitals of the world and several international seed firms are located just a few miles from here. Sadly, most, if not all are hybrids products. - RBS

Dear JWR:
I don't know if you respond to such e-mails, but if so, I would like to know if a bucket stamped HDPE#2 is certain to be a food grade bucket. I have seen buckets stamped as such at stores like Lowe's, but I was not sure if their being stamped HDPE#2 was in itself a guarantee. If you can answer this, I thank you. Thank you. - Daniel Miller

JWR Replies: I appreciate RBS reminding our readers of that hazard. (It has been mentioned a couple of times in the blog.) As I explain in the "Rawles Gets You Ready" family preparedness course, contamination of food grade buckets is one issue, but an equally-important issue is the suitability of buckets themselves, as they come new from the factory. Determining whether or not a particular used bucket is truly food grade can sometimes be a challenge. I've had several readers and consulting clients who have mistakenly been told that the the number 2 (with the number 2 inside the "chasing arrows" recycling symbol) refers to Food Grade HDPE, but that is not true. Not all "2" marked plastics are food grade! Let me explain: The "food grade" designation is determined by plastic purity by and what mold release compound is used in the injection molding process--not by the plastic itself, since all virgin HDPE material is safe for food. For paint and other utility buckets, manufacturers sometimes use a less expensive (and toxic) mold release compound. For food grade they must use a more expensive formulation that is non-toxic. Unless the buckets that you bought are are actually marked "food grade", (or, marked NSF, FDA, or USDA approved), then you will have to check with the manufacturer's web site to see if they make all food grade buckets. For more details, see the information at this barbecue and brining web site. If in doubt, then mark the suspect buckets to strictly non-food item storage, such as for storing cleaning supplies or ammunition

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