Rubbermaid Food Storage Buyers' Guide

Commercial kitchens require a lot of food storage, whether it's keeping produce and dry goods or holding finished menu items until you're ready to serve them. It's important to find the right storage for your kitchen and to be sure it complies with health and safety standards, with no potential health effects for your customers or employees. Rubbermaid food storage is available in a variety of shapes and sizes to help you find the best fit for your commercial foodservice operation.

Material

Learning about the materials used in making a Rubbermaid food container can help you figure out which storage solution will work best for you. Each type of plastic has its benefits and drawbacks. Rubbermaid has storage containers made with each of the following plastics:

• Polyethylene: First created in 1898, polyethylene is the most common plastic in the world, with 80 million tons being produced every year. The most economical type of plastic, it's also the most flexible and is able to withstand temperatures from -40 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Its major drawbacks are that it is an opaque white, which prevents users from seeing what is inside containers made from it, and it stains fairly easily. That doesn't just mean a change in appearance – it can also mean flavor transfer, particularly if you're storing acidic foods.
• Polypropylene: This type of plastic was invented in 1951, and approximately 55 million tons of it is created every year. Polypropylene is slightly more expensive than polyethylene, but it is translucent so you can see the container's contents easily. This plastic is flexible and tough, and will not warp in the dishwasher. It can withstand temperatures from 0 to 230 degrees Fahrenheit, so it is suitable for storing food warm, at room temperature, or in the refrigerator.
• Polycarbonate: First created in 1898 but not patented until the 1950s, polycarbonate is one of the most popular types of plastic due to it being transparent. It is a tough, flexible grade of plastic that works well for food storage. It is also impact-resistant, though it scratches easily. Rubbermaid's polycarbonate can handle temperatures from -40 to 212 degrees Fahrenheit and is dishwasher-safe.

Rubbermaid Food Storage Options

Whether you need to hold hot food, dry goods, or frozen ingredients, there is a Rubbermaid food container to properly store your product.

ProSave Ingredient Bins, made of a tri-meld plastic with polycarbonate lids, are ideal for bulk dry ingredient storage. The bins are white and equipped with clear lids that allow you to see the ingredients inside. ProSave bins come with a scoop, as well as a hook to hold the scoop above the ingredients to help you meet all health regulations regarding utensil storage. The clear lid slides open easily for one-handed access and comes in a frame that can also swing up to make stocking simple.

The ProSave line is available in sizes from 40 to 200 cups, while floor models mounted on casters have capacities from 400 to 600 cups. The shelf sizes include a first-in-first-out barrier, so you can be sure you are always using fresh ingredients. One of the major benefits of this line is that ingredients can be easily accessed with one hand even when the bins are stacked atop each other. Learn more about the Rubbermaid ProSave Ingredient Bins in our Learning Center.

While Brute containers are most often used as trash cans, large Brute food storage containers are also available. These are made out of durable polyethylene and can hold from 150 to 500 cups of food. These containers are available in several colors to help with organization, and some have labels on them, including 'inedible' and 'USDA Condemned'. Rubbermaid makes a round ProSave lid with a slide-open door that fits many Brute containers and also offers dollies with casters to make moving these large containers easy.

Food boxes are available in clear polycarbonate or in white polyethylene. The clear material has the benefit of being incredibly resilient and allowing you to see the box's contents easily, but the polyethylene versions are more economical. These food boxes are available with tight-fitting, snap-on lids that can also serve as trays. Available ProSave lids allow one-handed access. These Rubbermaid food containers hold as few as 2 gallons to as many as 21¹⁄₂ gallons.

Round storage containers are made out of either white polyethylene or translucent polypropylene, and can handle temperatures from 35 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. The yellow lids feature a double-wall seal for a positive lock, and only three sizes of lids are needed to fit all the containers, so you don't have to struggle to find the right one. These food containers can hold from 1 to 22 quarts and the largest size features a metal handle to make transporting it easier.

Available in clear polycarbonate and white polyethylene, square space-saving containers are stackable and feature capacity markings in blue and red. White containers can withstand temperatures from -20 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit, and clear containers are safe in temperatures from -40 to 212 degrees. Lids that fit multiple container sizes reduce the number of lids you need to keep on hand. These containers can hold 2 to 22 quarts and store at least 25 percent more than a round container in the same shelf space.