# Do you remove stickers from produce? Other purchases? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 1, 2023, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550 "2023-03-01T17:32:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/21 "2023-03-01T18:13:54Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > Interesting, it seems like if they are edible, they should be compostable. When my kids are here they often don’t remove them, and I find them in the compost when turning it or putting it on the garden months later. As readable as the day I bought the produce. I remove them just before eating or chopping the vegetable or fruit. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/22 "2023-03-01T18:14:33Z")
Good to know, thanks! ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/23 "2023-03-01T18:17:44Z")
We had new garage doors installed a couple years ago. There was an ugly orange warning sticker on each door, which I removed as soon as the installer left. It took some time to remove the stickers and residual goo. A week later the installer stopped by to make sure we were happy with everything. He looked over the doors, tweaked the light settings, then left. Of course, he replaced the stupid stickers. Once again I removed them as soon as he left. Fruits and veggies? I don’t really care. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/24 "2023-03-01T18:22:15Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Do you remove such stickers or not, and why/why not? But if you remove the stickers, you miss out on that chewy pulpy texture and the exotic glue taste! ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/25 "2023-03-01T18:27:50Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > There was an ugly orange warning sticker on each door, which I removed as soon as the installer left. It took some time to remove the stickers and residual goo. I don’t object to difficult-to-remove stickers if there’s an important safety reason, but if sellers put price stickers like this on regular merchandise, if it’s really bad I will return it rather than spend a long time trying to clean it off. I know some do it to stop unscrupulous shoppers switching labels, but inconveniencing all your other customers is not the right solution. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/26 "2023-03-01T18:50:54Z")
I also insist that car dealers not put any stickers or other advertising on cars I buy. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/27 "2023-03-01T19:02:48Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > When my kids are here they often don’t remove them, and I find them in the compost when turning it or putting it on the garden months later. As readable as the day I bought the produce. I had to do a double take on this as I wondered just what exactly it was that you were composting here. ---
**Author:** ![fordgt100](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@fordgt100](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fordgt100)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/28 "2023-03-01T19:10:52Z")
On produce, absolutely. Seems like a dumb idea to me. Do the grocers think people are so stupid that they can’t tell a banana from an apple? OK, don’t answer that, they might be. I do take labels off things that are in sight. Shampoo, alcohol, stuff like that. It makes them prettier. The window light softly illuminating my Prell shampoo with its glowing emerald color. It makes me forget that I bought it because it was cheap. Now it’s art! The containers of most products, like cans or bottles, look great once you remove their unsightly product advertising labels. My neighbor in Tucson would take ordinary clear product containers that were empty and remove their labels. Then she would fill them up w/ different colors of water made w/ food coloring and set them on the windows sills to catch the light. Beautiful. ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/29 "2023-03-01T19:19:07Z")
Glad to know that I’m not the only one. How’s your collection of yardsale price stickers? I do not peel the stickers from produce for display purposes, never occurred to me to be that interested in them. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/30 "2023-03-01T19:25:43Z")
> [@fordgt100](#): > > Do the grocers think people are so stupid that they can’t tell a banana from an apple? Have you bought produce in the last 25 years? There about 10 different apple varieties in any supermarket. And even for something like a banana, it is much quicker to just scan the label than look it up manually. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/31 "2023-03-01T19:28:38Z")
I never remove stickers from anything (unless it’s a decorative item), with one exception: back in the days when I still bought loads of CDs, they often had stickers right on the jewel cases, “Nice Price”, “Parental Advisory” tags, price tags, you name it. I always hated them and peeled them off and even often wiped off the glue residues with alcohol and a cloth. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/32 "2023-03-01T19:30:22Z")
Edible and flavorful stickers for fruit. I’ve already contacted a patent attorney. Am perusing websites that offer islands for sale. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/33 "2023-03-01T19:44:59Z")
That do not say, “Do Not Eat”. Yes, we remove them when unpacking groceries. We used to stick them on the noses of each other’s dogs. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/34 "2023-03-01T19:50:52Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > That do not say, “Do Not Eat”. I don’t think that matters. When I said “common sense”, I meant that there’s obviously a risk that someone might eat one accidentally. I mean, it’s a not even apt to call it a risk, it’s a certainty. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2023, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/35 "2023-03-01T21:09:10Z")
On bananas, I take the stickers off when I first get them. I’m not sure what would happen to the adhesive in the disposal, and if I wait 'til I eat them, the sticker might tear off part of the skin, which would attract fruit flies. For apples, I leave them on until I’m about to wash and eat the apple. I like to see which variety I’m about to eat. ---
**Author:** ![Yosh99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ccd318/32.png) [@Yosh99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yosh99)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2023, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/36 "2023-03-02T00:23:15Z")
As someone who formulated adhesives for a living, fresh fruit and vegetables are relatively hard to stick to. FDA Paragraph 175.125 regulates the ingredients for adhesives used to stick food labels. Interestingly, the FDA requirements for adhesives used to manufacture cigarettes is more stringent. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2023, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/37 "2023-03-02T00:35:25Z")
I have a great antipathy for fruit stickers. I do display my fruit and patiently remove all the fucking stickers except for pears which cannot tolerate that. It’s another reason to buy from farm stands. Even with all my care they show up in the compost, and then in the garden, bits of imperishable plastic garbage. I don’t remove stickers from packaging, which is generally is ugly with or without the sticker. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2023, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/38 "2023-03-02T00:35:55Z")
> [@fordgt100](#): > > On produce, absolutely. Seems like a dumb idea to me. Do the grocers think people are so stupid that they can’t tell a banana from an apple? OK, don’t answer that, they might be. For the most part they’re not for you, the consumer. They’re for the stocking/inventory/cashier. Different varieties of a particular fruit have different numbers, and I’ve noticed that some also have different numbers based on origin. So, for example, one type of apple from California might have one number and the same variety from Michigan has a different number. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2023, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/39 "2023-03-02T03:45:30Z")
Even the local organic grocery delivery service I use now has stickers on almost all of its produce. I’ve taken to jotting the delivery date on the stickers of the most perishable items so I can use the oldest first. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2023, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550/40 "2023-03-02T03:56:19Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I still have a sticker near my belly button that says “remove after delivery”. A red one? [![](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2443/3397/files/remove-before-flight-ribbon.jpg?v=1585419258) ](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2443/3397/files/remove-before-flight-ribbon.jpg?v=1585419258) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-remove-stickers-from-produce-other-purchases/980550.md?page=3)