styrofoam meat trays....

**sabrelvssammy** · 12-23-2009, 08:13 AM

so what exactly is the purpose of the styrofoam meat tray..? i mean...besides the obvious..(protection of the product from their place to yours)....

i guess my question is ...i have tons of meat trays/produce trays that i cannot recycle and have run out of alternative uses for....and i just read in another thread where someone reused some of theirs to freeze their venison steaks on.... so when i am repacking bulk items to go into the freezer...would it benefit the product any by being put on a styrofoam tray before wrapping and freezing...instead of just wrapping the item in saran wrap or whatever and putting in a zip-lock bag...? is there an x-tra insulating factor involved here keeping the product fresher longer ???.....

**frugalwarrior2** · 12-23-2009, 08:18 AM

I don't think so. I think they just provide something to display the meat until you buy it.
I had a whacko boss once that cleaned them and used an exacto knife to cut patterns and then make ink prints w/ them. I think he actually had a "showing" at a gallery somewhere. Go figure??
To me,once blood got on it, it's trash.

**shp1055** · 12-23-2009, 10:12 AM

I'm with you on the blood part, except that if you wash them in a bleach solution you can use them when you buy bulk ground beef and make patties, meat balls, HB steaks etc and it does help keep them uniform in size by lying flat and stacking in the freezer.

**Lady_V** · 12-23-2009, 10:18 AM

Not sure about an added benefit, but think about what it does... keeps blood from getting everywhere when there is meat on it.

They also come in handy if you are freezing bags of soup/sauces/soft things (Ask me how I know... I made the mistake of tossing in a bag of soup, and it froze AROUND the freezer shelf wires

)

**frugalwarrior2** · 12-23-2009, 10:27 AM

LadyV-I have a soup "octopus" in the freezer too. The kids left the freezer a jar and then someone pushed it closed to refreeze. ANNOYING. If you freeze in sandwich bags and on small cookie sheets this helps. Tupperware makes annoying clumps of food and the cheap stuff gets brittle. (sorry about the hijack)

If you put a gallon bag around a tray and then put the food on. You could put a second bag around it all. This would let the tray pop off easier?? Would that work??

**mombottoo** · 12-23-2009, 01:05 PM

My dh uses the trays to make airplanes for the grandkids, like the balsa wood airplanes. While our curbside recycler doesn't accept styrofoam we can take it to our transfer station for recycling. Have you checked with your local transfer station to see if they have a recycling program?

Using them to make to make ink print stamps is actually a great idea for a crafter.

**bluedog** · 12-23-2009, 04:04 PM

I can recycle mine at the store where they came from--maybe there would be a grocery near you? Mine is a Publix

**Grainlady** · 12-24-2009, 05:01 AM

Here's a web site with a lot of ideas...
http://www.ehow.com/how_2253626_plas...ble-trays.html

A food safety class I took recommended NOT reusing these foam trays for food due to the potential for bacteria growth from meat/blood/juices - even if you washed them with bleach, bleach/water solution.

**sabrelvssammy** · 12-24-2009, 08:25 AM

Originally Posted by mombottoo

While our curbside recycler doesn't accept styrofoam we can take it to our transfer station for recycling. Have you checked with your local transfer station to see if they have a recycling program?

unfortunatly i don't live in a city that thinks recycling should be a priority so we don't have curbside...i currently to take everything i can to a transfer station but they won't accept any styrofoam....

**dean** · 12-24-2009, 09:14 AM

I have reused them for years and years for refreezing and have never experienced any ill effects. I wash in bleach water to sanitize and tightly rewrap in clear freezer grade saran type wrap. They stack beautifully in the freezer, have the insulation value on the bottom of your shelf, and have been given a new lease on life. I wrap the venison steak, sausage, hm patties, premade meatloaves, rewrap bulk chicken, etc.
I also donate some to the local girl scout troop who make ornaments for an outdoor community Christmas tree. They make a great weather resistant ornament and come in great colors, so no painting required.
I use them for paint palettes when doing crafts, they wash up so easily.
Dog food and water dishes when traveling with our pets.
The list is endless.
When you have a yard sale, package 1/2 a dozen like sizes together and price at .50, you'll be suprised at the interest.

**Libby** · 12-24-2009, 11:29 AM

Um...my dad uses them instead of plates. He likes them more then plates b/c they're lightweight. He can put it on his lap to peel his orange onto or hold peanut shells b/c of the raised sides. He also uses it for toast or pizza. When they get ratty, he tosses that and pulls out another. OOOh imagine using these for roadtrips instead of paper plates? When you're done, you can throw it away lol

I do use them once in a while (after I've sanitized them) - ie baking. I will line it with foil, and sprinkle sugar or cinnamon in it for when I need to coat the top of a cookie. Place cookie in, spoon the sugars over top to let it stick then place on cooling rack. OR roll something around in it - breading something.

To be 'frugal' this year - we have the club pack/family pack size - the really long ones. I'm going to line with foil and place my baking on and wrap as gifts

I've also seen them used as a plant tray - to catch the excess water.

PS: We do get a lot of these trays but not from meat. Produce from the asian stores are cello-wrapped onto them as well to help protect the produce. However meat from those stores, are not. Funny how that's backwards eh?

**amyd** · 12-24-2009, 11:47 AM

I read somewhere that you can take off your outlet covers, trace around them on a styro meat tray, cut with xacto knife and use to insulate your outlets. I haven't tried it, my head is just full of useless info like that.

My mom used to save them and when we were having a garage sale, she'd help me bake cookies then package them on the clean trays for me to sell at the garage sale.

**Libby** · 12-24-2009, 10:27 PM

Just saw earlier tonight that my dad used one as a spoon rest on the counter! hahahaha he's smart for an old guy

**Trishagirl** · 12-25-2009, 05:45 PM

The meat shop where I get my meat doesn't use styrofoam meat trays they just use the plastic wrap and then butcher paper to wrap their meat. I don't like styrofoam anyway! I I got some I would use them for craft projects to hold my glitter and paint. etc.