Supermarket Cottage Cheese Pots

[Iamcazzy]

What is it with containers of coleslaw, cottage cheese and yogurt etc sold by supermarkets lately? All budget versions of these products are sealed with a tear off thin plastic sheet that cannot be used to reseal the contained. I've just opened an Aldi 300g tub of cottage cheese and I've only eaten half of it. Why should I have to place it in a bag before putting it back in the fridge when the premium versions of the product have a solid, replaceable lid.
Would a solid plastic lid really add that much to the cost of the product. Who guzzles 500g of plain, natural yogurt for example in one sitting?
Anyway, rant over lol.

[snags]

Cottage cheese eaters don't deserve the convenience of solid replaceable lids.

[pastafreak]

You can buy lids, or save a lid and re-use. The sizes are pretty
standard. Try being more careful when pealing the lid back.
No lids means that much less plastic in landfills and oceans. It may be only a bit, but it helps.

[barry1010]

I have loads of empty pots with lids, some that I bought many years and are still in daily use. I thought everyone had plastic tubs in all sizes for storing food.

[douglas9401]

You would think a cottage cheese lid could be made semi-detached.

[theprof]

Well, I have to say that I don't entirely agree with some of these views. I've had links with the food industry for many years and there's more to this than meets the eye.

The reality is that these pots could be capped with a proper lid for next to nothing. The benefit to the manufacturer is that most people simply can't be bothered to tip any unused contents into an alternative sealable container and those that do will forget when they transferred it within a day or two and bin the contents. Consequently, most people will finish the pot contents on the day of opening. In turn, sales of the product will increase. A well known yogurt manufacturer surveyed 3230 consumers a few years ago about these plastic films and established that consumer behaviour had increased sales by subtly encouraging entire container consumption. That's the reality in this money orientated world but please don't shoot the messenger over this.

Yes, we can all go out and buy lids, but why should we when the manufacturer can provide a reliable, secure and tested lid at fractions of a penny? Regarding the recycling issue, most of these containers disclose that the metal or plastic film cannot be recycled. Plastic lids can be recycled in virtually all cases just like the pot itself. Being careful when taking off the plastic film does not work as the plastic film will not stick to the container a second time as it's thermally applied in the factory. Faffing around writing use by dates on containers is something that's not acceptable to many when the manufacturer can resolve it all very simply and safely by bunging a recyclable plastic lid on the pot.