"boxes" news and stories

Sometime about five years ago or so, I got in the habit of printing recipes I wanted to try off the internet. This was back in the days when I had a full-time administrative grunt job and so had free time, abundant internet access and unlimited laser printer toner. I started out storing those recipes in a three-ring binder, but quickly outgrew that storage device. I ended up with a file crate with hanging files and manila folders (complete with clearly printed labels--I can be a little overzealous with the office supplies at times).

In addition to that crate (which I often flip through for inspiration) I have a series of small wooden file boxes in which I've stashed the recipes I really like and want to be able to access again easily (without digging through several reams of paper). Sometimes I think about revamping my recipe storage system, but I hate to mess with a good thing.

If you are looking for a way to store your recipes (or want to buy a creative kitchen-based gift for a friend or family member) you should head over to Design*Sponge and check out the Recipe Storage Roundup that Grace put together. She has scoured the internet for a variety of boxes and binders that will hold your recipes neatly and in style. I am particularly smitten with that binder decorated with silhouettes of kitchen utensils.

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Single-serving wines are growing in popularity, and though they make up just under two percent of the total wine market, sales in the relatively new sector have grown by 14.7% in the past year and are increasing daily. As the market grows, higher quality wines are being repackaged, where once only lower-end wines used non-traditional packaging.

The reason for the explosion in the industry is a simple one. Although wine is enjoying an unprecedented high in popularity, many people still view it as being for a special occasion, when company comes over or they really want to kick back and celebrate. They don't want to open a whole bottle for just one or two glasses per week; they want wine to be convenient. Single serving boxes and mini bottles offer the perfect solution, since they hold 1 to 1 1/2 glasses of wine each and don't give an occasional drinker the sense that they are "wasting" a whole bottle by opening it. They make wine more more accessible to a large audience of occasional drinkers who were underserved by the market.

"It gets wine on the table every night," said one winemaker.

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The four nesting layers of these lunch pails were inspired by an Asian design of stackable lunchboxes. They are made of food-grad stainless steel, and are a very adult way to take your lunch to work.

The advantages to such a lunch box are mostly that the things in each container are kept separate and that the containers can be joined together and carried as one unit. While you could achieve the same type of separation with Tupperware, you won't end up with the same easy-to-carry stack. If you're not taking a lunch, the containers can be used for snacks, like M&Ms, nuts or dried fruits to get you through a long after noon. On top of that, the design is simply beautiful. The disadvantages are that you'll have to find things that fit in the boxes, so sandwiches might be out, considering each layer is 5-1/4" in diameter and 2" deep. The boxes are also not insulated, so they will have to be refrigerated if you are carrying anything that cannot be stored at room temperature. Whether the bad outweighs the good is up to you, but it's definitely a better choice if you tend to take salads and leftovers for lunch, rather than chips and sandwiches.

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In January, the city of Oakland, California, just across the bay from San Francisco, instituted a tax on businesses that they believed created the most litter in the city. The city council felt that businesses needed to be more socially responsible for their customer's actions, while business owners opposed the measure, saying that packaging is necessary to sell goods - particularly food items - in a safe and sanitary manner.

Now, city businesses have to change the way they package their food, in addition to paying for it, because the city has just banned styrofoam food packaging.

Due to take effect in January, the measure says that all food packaging must be biodegradable when composted with food waste. Supporters of the law point out that 15 percent of the litter collected in storm drains is styrofoam/polystyrene packaging. They gained additional support from the fact that there are 100 other cities, including Portland and neighboring Berkeley, which have similar bans, and San Francisco is expected to join that list later this year.

The city will use fines ranging from $100-$500 to enforce the measure and businesses that still use styrofoam will have have to find another way to keep their food warm.

 

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Here's a little taste of fruit and vegetable ephemera for all you antique lovers out there. These come from BlueSkySearch.com, a produce industry job resource site. They have page after page of these labels, some weirder than others, as well as a good page of history about them. I'm particularly fond of Cousin Elmer, who likes like he could almost be an R. Crumb creation. Follow the link below for a few others.