Ya can't win. Just when you thought it was a good idea...

Are you one of those good souls who conscientiously takes your recycle bag to the supermarket? University of Arizona research shows50%+ of 84 reusable bags collected from shoppers in Tucson, LA and the San Francisco Bay area were contaminated with potentially harmful bacteria, including E.coli, a bug found in fecal matter.

How? Meat! Leaking juice/blood. There are other foods that also cause problems of course. The contaminated bag then may cross-contaminate other food if you don't wash the bag before its next use.

Now before you rush out and scrub your bag, just a note. The study was funded by the plastic bag manufacturers of USA.