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Seeing Someone Touch Your Food

I went to a cheese store and while getting out my credit card to pay, I saw the counter person holding and handling the unwrapped cheese without gloves or a tissue. Her hands were all over the cheese.

I know I'm getting a little nuts, but would this bother you?

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  1. Having grown up in a big family and having children myself this would not bother me. We always had our fingers in everything.
    That being said, I can see how it would bother some.
    Then again, the food handlers put on gloves then put their hand down on the counter, touch a bakery box, handle money etc..
    The only time I ever had an issue is when a deli worker made my sammich wearing gloves, sneezed into her hands and then wrapped my sammich. I made a complaint to the manager and left. I guess we all have our limits.

    1. I think it all depends on what I suspect they 'touched' beforehand.

      1. I have a phobia about that, with or without gloves. I know that behind the wall in a restaurant or grocery or whatever people are touching my food, I just don't want to see it.

        If the item is wrapped or packaged or comes out of the kitchen plated then I have no problem with it.

        Totally irrational but what can you do.

        1. Not a germophobe by any stretch of the imagination, but I DO believe strongly in proper food handling hygeine. Gloves, hairnets (I despise TV chefs with long hair just dangiing it over the food)...all seem to be a thing of the past. I agree that it IS an issue, and it is often blatantly ignored by food "professionals."

          4 Replies
          1. re: njmarshall55

            Not to mention the sweat dripping off the end of their nose and into the food.

            1. re: mucho gordo

              The hands don't bother me much, the sweat does.

              1. re: Quine

                +1. I'd rather have somebody's clean hands on my food than somebody's latex gloves, especially if they've been powdered. Yuck. Hands are historically wonderful. Keep them clean and you can handle my food without any complaint from me. Just don't pick your nose or teeth, okay?

                1. re: Quine

                  But sweat is different. Don't care for it on my food.

            2. I'm not overly paranoid about such things, and I'm certainly not nuts, but in the situation you describe, i would have told the clerk to start over....with gloves, cabinet wax etc.

              3 Replies
              1. re: Uncle Bob

                When I saw her do that I said, "you aren't suppose to touch the cheese without gloves or using a piece of wax." Her response was, "we don't wear gloves here".

                1. re: DaisyM

                  My response would have been "then I don't shop here". I would have left and followed up with a manager to express my concerns.

                  1. re: DaisyM

                    It may well be state mandated that gloves must be worn, you can Google that.

                    But no matter what anyone else says here, and I will bet there will be *horror!!!* abounding, it's all in how you feel about it, that matters.