Everyday, we are handed countless plastic bags: at the grocery store, some retail stores, the farmer’s market, even in restaurants. Yes, they are convenient BUT they are avoidable.

We are all for the banning of plastic bags – the banning of plastic bags may not be the salvation of the environment, but it could be a useful way to begin reducing waste pollution. Plastic bags are more harmful to the marine environment since they have a greater ability to suffocate sea creatures. So let’s do what little we can to help.

Reusable bags have been around for some time. Thankfully, more and more people are using these bags for eco-friendly shopping. Now a lot of these totes are made of a canvas like material – both inside and out – and even though these totes are helping the environment they can get pretty yucky for the person using it.

There was a research recently that claimed “half of the reusable bags tested in a recent study were contaminated…”

That’s why you should keep your grocery bags clean. If your reusable bag is all material – remember to wash it, maybe put it in with the whites now and again. Do NOT do this with cooler bags.

If you have one of our reusable cooler bags, the best ones are with the plastic interior then you can clean the inside with a mix of vinegar and water or one of the bacterial wipes (check our tips on how to clean your cooler.)

You don’t have to spend a fortune on these bags. They are functional AND look cool. Some of the insulated bags look like everyday tote bags – ideal for farmers market or a “one/two thing” trip to the grocery store.

The larger ones are ideal for weekly grocery shopping. The River is the largest we have – this is one of my favorite coolers, and a weekly staple at the market – I can fit all my cold foods in this bag and most of the time have space for the dry goods.

And you don’t have to use a tote – the rolling coolers or the collapsible coolers can hold a lot of food too.

So look around and look for the perfect bag, helping you, helping the environment.

One of the many questions we get asked is if you can keep foods warm in our cooler bags. And the answer is yes, all insulated bags can be used for cooling AND keeping foods warm.

Whether it’s for the food industry, tailgating parties or the neighborhood get together – we have some tips for you on the best way to pack you cooler so that your foods stay warm.

Now, you can’t just heat up your food and then toss it in the cooler and hope for it to stay warm, ain’t gonna happen. You have to “help” it stay warm.

First things first: Prepare or reheat your foods as close to the time of packing as possible. Then wrap up your pots/items in tin foil. (if you don’t want to use foil you can wrap it in a kitchen towel – but I have found the foil to work best and you can always reuse the foil – so no waste). The trick is to use hot gel packs (yes, we have ‘em too!). Heat them up as instructed and place the hot packs under and around your foods and then wrap with a kitchen towel. Carefully place in the cooler. Try filling up spaces with kitchen towels – this is important as not allowing for empty space also helps the insulated bags keep your foods warm.

I know there’s no need to say this…but I must mention it – please don’t put any cold foods in with your hot foods.

Keep the cooler closed until ready to serve. Remember to serve the foods quickly within several hours for maximum food safety – please use your own judgment to determine food safety.

We have a great selection of rolling coolers. The are great for family picnics, beach get together’s, tailgating, camping, you name it.

One of the best coolers, in our opinion and experience is the T-Rex rolling cooler . The largest rolling cooler available at Keep Your Cooler. A new products that’s already a favorite with customers.

This cooler was recently reviewed as the “coolest cooler” by Cooks Illustrated Magazine – and we were super pleased that they thought the same way about this bag as we do.

Great for busy parents going to the soccer/softball/football game – easy to pack for the whole family and since it has the nifty little velcro opening at the top – you can one-hand it. No need to unzip the whole cooler to get your drinks! And extra sturdy! With mega wheels.

The medium sized coolers are great for food transportation OR to take to the racing.

Or travel – the smaller ones (32 cans) are ideal for travel (fits most carry on guidelines to bring aboard airlines – please check with airlines for confirmation).

There are also the rolling wine coolers. These hold up to six bottles of wine (they come with a divider).

They all easily collapse (when empty) for easy storage but make sure to check the sizes (all the sizes are in the description field) to make sure that these items will fit your needs.

Happy Cooling!

One of the most important questions we are asked in regards to children’s lunch boxes – are they lead free?

At Keep Your Cooler we have a great selection of children’s lunch coolers – and they are lead free. All of these bags are insulated and have been designed with safety in mind. These coolers are complaint with the new Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA).

The meaning of CPSIA is as follows: “designed to allow The U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) to better regulate the safety of products made and imported for sale in the U.S. CPSIA also contains regulations that are intended to make products for children under age 12 safer by requiring manufacturers and importers to show that these products do not have harmful levels of lead and phthalates”.

So, when you see that you’ll know that these bags have been tested and all have passed and are compliant with CPSIA. In a nutshell, it means that the lead levels are really low and safe for use.

If you are looking for a kid friendly lunch bag the term “kid friendly” will be mentioned in the description. Please check the FAQ tab on each page for more information.

Kid’s don’t want to brown bag it anymore… it’s just not cool. If our kids like their lunch box they will look forward to using it. There are adorable tote bags for girls and macho lunch pails for the boys.

Let them see the pictures of our cool lunch coolers online and let them choose a nifty cooler to take to school.

Also ideal for you as a parent to ensure that your kids have healthy, nutritious meals and snacks all day long (plus we won’t have to listen to Jamie Oliver nag about unhealthy food at schools anymore – that alone should be worth it!).

Here are some tips for your next road trip.

Depending on how many of you are going to be traveling, it’s always good to pack an assortment of different foods and snacks.

First thing first, pick a cooler. For me the best cooler for road trips is the collapsible coolers – these coolers are
soft sided coolers and hold a lot of food and beverages – especially the 52 can cooler. It also collapses down into a small package when empty which is ideal to store under one of the car seats.

Why drive thru one of the fast-food places. They are so unhealthy and can be quite expensive. Find a nice place to stop with your family (you can always look up your trip and find tips on where to stop along the way). Below you will find some healthy alternative to burger and fries.

Everyone has different taste’s so it’s good to pack different snacks for different people. Cut up some melon and store them in a ziplock. Wash and dry grapes, strawberries, blueberries and put them in containers – ready to eat!

How about some string cheese, babybel cheese and soft spreadable (single serving portions are available) cheese. Some crackers , small individual packets of almonds and/or pretzels and you are all set!

For drinks, water is ideal (re-use your water bottle over and over again to help the environment). Freeze a couple of small bottles to help keep the rest of the food and drinks cold – that along with freezer packs keeps your goodies cold for 6-10 hrs.

Don’t forget napkins, sanitizing wipes and a trash bag.

We are talking about my favourite subject today… FOOD!!!
What to pack for a picnic, the beach, days out with friends, family…
The beautiful summer days are here – we are having an AMAZING summer so far in So. California. It’s beautiful – not too hot and great for days out.

So I have a couple of food ideas for you to pack on your next outing. I get very bored with the usual cold cuts and potato salad (which are heavy and loaded with mayo) so I try to get creative when I arrange an outing with my friends.

Of course, we must start with one of our fantastic coolers. As you know we have a store full of coolers so choose the best one for the occasion (picnic, collapsible, rolling, backpack) and start packing.

I love Italian food. There is nothing like crusty Italian ciabatta bread with some yummy chesse and dips. You can pre-make a bruschetta topping. Cut up some fresh roma tomatoes, fresh garlic, basil and mix together. Put the olive oil (extra virgin, if you please) in a small container and drizzle on your tomato mixture before serving (if you do it when you prep, it’ll get soggy – unless you like soggy… )

You can also buy some olive tapenades or caponata to spread on your bread. And if you want really simple – your lovely Italian bread, a knife and Nutella! If it were me, I’d be fine with just a spoon and Nutella… sigh.

For the most part I do try and pack healthy. Maybe a Mexican themed day. Baked chips, guacamole, salsa and some bean dip. How about some pre-made cheese quesadilla’s (keep em warm with the hot packs). Easy and healthy. And if you want to indulge, bring along the Margaritas!

I also like to mix – some chips, cut up pita bread, a container of hummus and some yummy dips – Trader Joe’s has a great selection. Don’t forget water and also some clean up wipes.

Remember to pack your cooler properly (see our other blog entries for that) and your food and drinks should last all day.

Enjoy!

So how do you keep foods/drinks cold…

The simple answer…it’s the way you pack your cooler. If you toss your foods/drinks in a cooler and hope that it will be in one piece and cool for when you arrive at your destination – not gonna happen. A lot of people actually do this and wonder why their cooler is “not working”.

A lot of you already know this but let me help you with some extra tips.

First, a little prep work before packing your cooler.

Now I usually keep my cooler in the garage and it gets very hot out there in the Californian summer (which, as we know, is 11 months of the year). So the night before I leave on a trip, I bring the cooler in the house so that it gets a chance to cool down (don’t put them in the fridge or freezer – the insulation will crack). House temperature is fine.

If your cooler is only half full then that means the rest of the cooler is full of air, which means the ice packs will melt faster, drinks/foods won’t stay as cool… etc. Think of it like not closing the fridge all the way.

So first thing is to decide what you are going to pack THEN bring a cooler that will fit all your goodies (you do have more than one size of cooler, right?).

Important – line the bottom of the cooler with reusable ice packs OR fill up several ziplock bags with ice and line your cooler with those.

If you are bringing a lot of food and a ton of drinks – best to bring 2 coolers, one for each.

Pack foods in order – so for instance if you are bringing raw meats, fish or chicken they should always be on the bottom. Make sure whatever you bring are in sealed bags. PLEASE don’t just toss a raw chicken in there and hope for the best (yes, this has happened before). Wrap it – seal it. Avoid cross contamination. Clean all your goods before placing them in the bags so they are ready to toss on the barbecue when you get to your destination.

Remember to put the “soft” stuff at the top and the heartier stuff at the top/middle.

Fill up spaces with small frozen bottles of water. I’ve found this is a great way to keep my stuff cold.

Put your cooler in the trunk of the car or somewhere away from the sun. You can even put a blanket or your extra clothes around it for extra insulation.

This should keep your food/drinks cold throughout the day.  Please read our FAQ tips on how to pack your cooler for more tips!