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Raw meat mixed with fresh foods....or frankly anything that is not raw meat, including cooked meat products. Argh.

I have gotten bugged enough by that to either take over and bag myself or use the big self-check lanes whenever I can.

Same peeve with cleaning products in with food items. Ew.

The worst single bagging incident was when a container of cottage cheese was on the bottom of the bag, lying on its side, and a 5-lb bag of sugar was on top of it. Of course, the cottage cheese popped open and spewed all over everything, including getting the bag of sugar wet. Yeah, that was fun to clean up.

@sadiepix- Yeah my computer froze when I was responding and once it finally posted, there was already a comment by you saying nearly the same thing! hehe.

The most frequent one I experience is putting all heavy items (like containers of almond milk) in one, single bag rather than spreading the weight across several bags.

@smile - here in Israel, too. I like it for the sake of being able to put all my cold stuff together (I live 5 minutes from the store and a single stick of butter will get all soft in that time if it's not in with the other cold stuff!), but I don't know how the baggers open the bags so fast - I'm all thumbs! I've given up and gone to string bags. (Which my mother thought were naughty lingerie when she came across one *blush*)

I have to wonder if they get any training. I have been known to say say, "W-T-F are you doing?!!" when they mix raw beef and chicken in the same bag. I usually get a sharp stare and they act like they have no clue.

I always love the bread or fruits with bottles of 3 liter soda. Thanks a fcking lot...I hope someone does that to YOUR groceries. Deli meat with bathroom cleanser, vegetables and toilet paper with raw meat, bread with sugar and cans stacked vertically, frozen items with (hot) roasted chicken from the deli, I could go on...

Heh Heart, that's the other thing. Putting three 3 liter bottles or 10 cans in one thin plastic bag that already has a hole in it...along with a canteloupe.

My husband has dumped all the bags out in front of the cashier, rebagged them, and told them exactly what they did wrong (see above) - regardless of how long the line is.

It just takes a little common sense on a lot of these things.

my pet peeve has more to do with shoppers than baggers. people who don't bring their own reusable bags!!! disgusts me everytime!!

I just unpack my basket onto the conveyor really fast, with the stuff I want on the bottom of the bag at the front of the line. Then when they ask what kind of bag I want, I say 'canvas' and I let them know that I'll be bagging. It's kind of the only way to make sure it gets done right.

The grocery stores around here frequently hire inexperienced very young people, and don't seem to train them!

The worst violation so far has been to drop a pack of leaky red meat in with a green apple, a lemon and some other unbagged fresh produce. I called the store to let them know this was unacceptable. (The meat wasn't exactly leaking but was a sloppy tray of hastily packed hamburger and so was wet, etc. and this was when they didn't have individual bags for you to put your meat in.)

It happened again not long after that, and I was watching. Raw chicken does not go on top of lettuce, even if it is wrapped! I literally almost screamed and grabbed the food myself and bagged it. I often like to watch the register as they ring everything up, but will bag my own stuff in a heartbeat to save it from one of these cross-contamination wizards.

Have I mentioned that my husband is convinced I have OCD? No? Well, consider yourselves warned now and bear with me, and I will continue.

I always bag my groceries myself because I have rather strong ideas of how my groceries should be bagged. Yeah, I know how it sounds - please see above. In any case: cold things should be together, inedible things should be separated from edible, meats should be separated from other foods, glass jars should not be one next to another, and (this is where my Other Half goes, "cuckoo!") things should stand not lie on the side, or worse yet, be upside down - I'm talking about yoghurts, sour cream, milk, ice cream, pretty much anything that has "top" and "bottom". I'll stop here:-).

Brooke, that's the way I am...including the stuff being put in upside down or haphazardly. That makes me twitch, but I don't yell about that since the baggers don't know any different. :P My husband bags if it is possible. There are quite a few places here that don't allow for customers to bag their own groceries by the way the area is set up.

Also, many places here don't have self-check lanes, or if they do it's 1 open lane with 5 people lined up and a flashing light, and the service registers are empty.

I also can't stand it when ANY of my stuff touch wet spots or the ground. I realize a lot of our food comes from the ground or touches the ground when it's stocked. :P It even drives me crazy when people sneeze on my groceries too.

i mostly get annoyed when i buy 6 things and end up with 6 plastic bags -- each with one item. makes no sense and is a total waste.

I've never been to a grocery store that has dedicated baggers. The checker will usually help out but by the time they're done ringing I've usually got everything bagged in my reusable bags. Just bring your bags and do it yourself.

I HATE it when they set anything on top of the chips or just toss them on the conveyor belt. Nothing like a $4 bag of crumbs.

@Brooke: I loved the conversation piece! There absolutely is a right and wrong way to bag groceries (you can tell your hubby you are not crazy). I was not aware there was any other way. I remember asking if I had to go thru that training course at the grocery store. I already knew how to bag by the age of 15 and 1/2. Come on, I have to sit thru a class that will show me common sense. Uhhh. I barely listened.

The most interesting was when I ran the front end or when I was working the front desk. Oh the things people do to/with food. And then try to return. Ohhh the stories.

I do enjoy reading these threads too...Makes me feel like I am not alone. :)

The most heinous thing of all is the plastic bags. Stop using them.

When I was in high school I had a job as a grocery bagger- I do remember a pretty thourough explanation regarding bagging the groceries- I remember at the time thinking .
..."Dude, this is waaaaay lame and should we need to be told not to stack heavy things on eggs?How fricken dumb do they think we are?" But now as an adult I see the need for such thorough instruction- as clearly baggers haven't gotten that training or are failing to heed it.
BTW: I'm still grossed out by the idea of "meat with toilet paper".thanks for that visual.

oh I see btrflygrl & I have similar comments- hey there btrflygrl!

Wow, it's very strange to read the comments/complaints. The only frustrations I have with baggers here are minor: they used to seem quite perplexed when confronted with reusable bags (drastically reduced these days), and they but things like a large sack of potatoes in its own bag (it has a bag and handle built into it). They are almost always very polite and friendly, too (and yes, usually high school kids).

I used to be fussy about putting things on the belt in the order I wanted them bagged (heavy items first), then realized that it's more efficient for the cashier--and thus me--to have all the produce first.

It bothered me how many different bags they'd use, but I am quite sure that's how they are trained, since apparently a lot of people will freak out if their sponges are in a bag with their produce. To me, I only need to keep raw meats separate, and chemicals away from food. If it's merely a non-chemical sundry, I don't care if it's in with the cheese. With the reusable bags, though, they will pack them as full as physically possible. I don't mind heavy bags, though, as long as things are packed so I can carry them up to my 3rd floor apartment in a minimum number of trips (2 max).

And I found the baggers at Whole Foods to be exceptional: they pack very carefully, and they'll put rubber bands around plastic clamshell packages or anything else that might pop open. Very nice touch.

That being said, I won't hesitate for a second to bag my own groceries if there's not a bagger at the checkout. That's my biggest pet peeve: shoppers who stand there staring while the cashier has to ring up everything and then bag everything.

It's all kind of silly anyway, but I wanted to put a word in for the capable, friendly baggers that out there.

@Bisbee: How's it going? Soooo happy that someone has gone thru the same pain as I!! Along with bagging was getting the carts. How awful was that in blizzards and monsoons or 150 degree weather? Nothing like sweating from the heat then going in the ice or dairy box. :) Or how about those clean ups? I think I worked at the grocery store wayyyy too long...

@izatryt: Don't do it!! Ever! Oh god no. You don't just bag. There's more that goes along with that. Heed my warning! :)

@Butrflygirly - Remember, I will be "retired" that = old and I will probably get fired in a week or so. BUT, I will have made a difference.

I was a checker & bagger as a part-time job in high school. The only plastic bags we had back then (1800's), were for dripping meat and ice cream type products. Brown bags all the way. I was really good at it and took pride in doing it correctly! Does anyone remember the bagging contest that was shown on Johnny Carson every year?

I have found that the worst offenders are teen boys. They don't care, or don't have a clue. They'll put all the heavy everythings in one bag, mix toilet cleaner with fresh fish, put a little dairy in each bag, eggs and potato chips under the Tide and milk gallon, and fresh tomatoes and grapes get squashed by the watermelon which is rolling off the top. As bad as all that, those stupid plastic bag handles rip right off, they already have holes in them and it's nearly impossible to get them into the house without spilling the contents. I'm glad to see them go.

I coudn't do that job again. My back ached even back then in the dark ages.

@smile- I'm in Korea too! cheongdam, seoul to be exact

my worst experience was buying a birthday cake for a friend at Wegman's, I wanted it to be a surprise, so I asked for a paper bag. The cake was wider than the bottom of the bag, so the bagger puts it in with the bag on its side, and then turns it upright. DOH! They gave me a new one (with a serious discount), but the flavors were custom and they were only able to decorate it as Id' asked. Did we miss the science lesson on gravity?

I agree and have experienced almost everyone of the bagging transgressions you have all mentioned and could have screemed more than once! But for me, one of the worst offender is the checkout clerk who picks up your fruit or bakery to scan and than unceremoniously drops it on the belt for the non-existant bagger and then, having already bruised the fruit or otherwise mangled the groceries you carefully picked choose keeps running the belt to jamb your groceries together at the end of the counter "for your convenience". Yes, I've been a checkout clerk and bagger at a fruit/vegetabe/cheese/sausage and pick-your-own store and assure you, anyone doing that would have been warned - - ONCE.

I hate, (and have made a spectacle of myself by rebagging), when the bagger bags cleaning supplies and food for my animals. Yes, I know that it is not people food, but my animals eat this stuff, and would rather not like cleanser on the cat/dog/guineapig/fish/goat food.

I work in a grocery store in Virginia,I bag my own grocerys. I am almost pschotic about my watermelon. In tne winter months when you can't by a whole watermelon for $4.99 I buy a section that has been cut and wrapped in the store.Usually about 1.00 a lb. not cheap. I take my time to pick out the best looking piece,nothing that looks bruised. I get up to the check out and carefully lay it on the belt.The check out person then procedes to scan it by dragging it face down across the scanner,then the bagger grabs it and has to literely put his thumb through the wrap to pick it up,In as little time as that takes my piece of watermelon is running with juice and hand and THUMB prints indented in it.Ibag my own grocerys!!!

@feistyfoodie - The dreaded folded gift bag situation! I so hear you on that one. I will be sure to incorporate the proper technique for "bagging" gift bags in my training video!

I had a frustrating experience at my local grocery store today (Wegman's) and remembered this thread on SE. My bagging rules are very simple and common sense: cold items together, heavier stuff on the bottom, lighter stuff on top, don't put all the heavy stuff in one bag. I don't eat meat so that's not an issue, and my favorite cleaning supplies are baking soda and vinegar so I don't care if those are together. I live a 5-10 min walk away from the store and I don't have a car, and I like being "green" so I always bring my own bags. It is much easier to carry 3 sturdy but heavier canvas bags than 12 flimsy plastic bags. Actually, they are the bags that the store sells, so you think the cashier would be used to them, but no.

The set up of the register is challenging if you have the reusable bags. Instead of having a belt that moves your items from the scanning area to the bagging area, there is an open space next to where the cashier stands that has the hooks with plastic baggies on them. That way, the cashier can scan the items and place them directly into the plastic bag. If you have reusable bags, which are a bit bigger, you have to loop the handles around the hooks. Some cashiers will just pick the items up and moved them to the bagging area, which involves *gasp* actually physically turning around! Now, today I was in a bad mood because the woman 2 people in front of me in line didn't have enough cash to pay for her groceries and had to get some items removed, which took a while. I only had $30 worth of groceries, about 1-2 bags worth. The cashier was a very pretty girl in her late teens/early 20s. First she asked me if I wanted her to "pass the items back" to me, and I had no idea what she meant, so I respectfully declined. Then she asked me to "hold the bag open" for her while she dropped the items in. I patiently explained how the other cashiers handled the reusable bags, and she whined, "But they fall off when I do that!" Honey, I am not your boyfriend, and batting your pretty little eyes at me is not going to get me to do your work for you. Funny how they don't fall off when the other cashiers do the same thing!

There is one very pleasant older woman who works there who actually thanks me for using reuseable bags. The rest are bored teenagers who seem pissed because they can't just use the plastic bags that are already there. I had one once who put the canvas bag I was buying INTO A SEPARATE PLASTIC BAG! I understand that earning $8/hr is not the pinnacle of your 16-year old life. But, please, exercise a little common sense and thought and you'll be much more prepared for whatever job the future holds, and you might even get a promotion, raise, or recommendation out of it!

From the other side of the fence, I work at a store that has self checkout but we often help the customers bag their groceries. Just like you all get annoyed that the checker just throws the items down to the bagger, we get annoyed when customers place things on the belt in an order that guarantees squishing unless we jump up and move things aside. I saw a women scan a watermelon and a cantaloupe directly after a loaf of bread and another scan a gallon of milk right after her eggs and bread. Not to mention the people who stand their bottles of wine (or other things) upright on the belt when there is obviously a problem when the item gets to the end of the belt.
Most of us have no problem bagging to your specifications as long as you let us know before we start bagging. I've seen the people who are incredibly interested in avoiding cross contamination as well as the people who don't care and just want as few bags as possible. If you tell us, (especially let us know you have your own bags before we've bagged half of your order) you'll save yourselves the anger or annoyance you've been expressing here.
And can I give a big thank you to people who scan (or place on the belt) their groceries in a logical bagging order, I love you all.

I also think the common sense rule should apply to the customers. If you don't want you bread squished, don't put it up first followed by all your heavy items. Honestly, how hard is it to put like things up together. It makes everyone's lives easier.
As frustrating as it is for customers to have things bagged incorrectly, it's just as frustrating for us baggers to try to untangle your jumbled mess as you stare at us impatiently. If you're that OCD about it, do it yourself!

"When it comes to bagging groceries, it's like fingerprints-everybody's different" Albert Einstein

(P.S. No, Einstein didn't really say that!!!!!!!!!)

You are a nut!!!

AND, I "bagged" them myself!

Rubbed, perky and ready to grill!