At Tim Hortons Your Coffee & Coffee Lid Is Highly Unsanitized
One would think that Tim Hortons, a Canadian morning coffee seller, would be the cleanest and most sanitized place to purchase your morning coffee or breakfast but you’re sadly mistaken – hear me out.
For starters the average age a Tim Hortons employee is between the age of 15 and 24. I ask you, what does anyone in that age group know, realize, contemplate or take seriously regarding germs and bacteria growth?
Well apparently quite a few of them to but I’d still presume less than 20% care about it. If I’m correct in my estimate that means 20% of those under-aged and over-aged Tim Hortons employees aren’t too concerned with general or aware of how easily diseases can be transmitted
That leaves you, them and myself open to bacterial illnesses through the following behaviours and methods of each Tim Hortons employee of which we’re all quite familiar with.
At Time Hortons Donuts Virtually Every Employee Handles Money
Not a nice thought is it? Now I’m not a stickler for hand cleanliness when it comes to money but I won’t put a five dollar bill in my mouth. I also definitely would wash my hands if I was about to cook something or handle food after handling money – that’s for sure.
Well the money handlers do pick up a piece of wax paper when they pick up a donut for you or throw on a pair of thin wax gloves when they’re about to make a bagel but there’s a few more products they handle for us that we haven’t looked at yet. Before we do you need to remember the following as true.
There’s At Least One Tim Hortons Employee Per Shift That Picks Their Nose While On Shift
OK this sounds a little harsh but I’m sure we all believe that nose picking does happen from time to time – that’s a risk. That and the in-hand sneeze or cough, ear-digging and the occasional snot-wipe. Yuck!
Now what’s the problem with Tim Hortons employees money-grabbing and snot-wiping when they wear gloves? Well I can’t tell you just yet as there are two more situations in which your coffee is at risk and I need to make these clear below first.
Rolling Up Your Rim Is Highly Unsanitized
You may not have ever considered the possibility of spreading your germs to the next Tim Hortons’ customer while rolling up your rim and tsk tsk on you for not realizing this. Now although Tim Hortons has posted their suggested ways of rolling up the rim, everyone knows that a good number of us actually use our teeth and our teeth spread our saliva. So what?
Well where do you redeem your roll-up-the-rim winning stub? Right at the drive-through window or counter of your local Tim Hortons and into the fingers of a Tim Hortons employee.
Now this is where things start getting icky – read on to discover how high the possibility is that you’re drinking particles of plaque from the mouth of the person in the car or customer in front of you and the several other hundred customers before you.
The Tim Hortons Coffee Cup Lid Is The Primary Source Of Our Sanitization Issue
With all of the above seriously noted, the next time you are in Tim Hortons remember to observe how your coffee cup lid is being handled. Your coffee lid is being handled left, right and centre; pressed and pushed and sometimes even lined up one on-top of the other, in line waiting to get out the window. Was the counter sanitized before that other cup of coffee was placed on top of yours?
There’a a good change it hasn’t been completely sanitized (not simply wiped) for quite some time.
Based on the information above your coffee lid is in great danger of being dangerously susceptible to the spread of dangerous bacteria either from the Tim Hortons counter of their beloved employees’ hands and finger-tips.
Before I provide a solution to this dilemma I must add one more problem to the mix.
Fly Droppings In Your Stir Spoon Mix
What’s a stir spoon mix? I call the little stainless steal container that contains ice and the daily spoon that is used for mixing your tea of coffee the stir spoon mixture.
Now I know the ice in the container helps keep the dairy residue from growing bacteria (quickly) but that doesn’t stop fly droppings and other dust particles from entering the container and being transferred to your coffee.
I’m sorry Tim Hortons, I really am but I’m shocked that a Canadian coffee and breakfast company such as yours is so willing to partake in such unsanitized behaviour and policies while putting Canadian’s at risk.
The Solution To The Tim Hortons Coffee Lid Dilemma
The solution to our Tim Hortons coffee lid dilemma is simple: provide a dispenser where customers can select a lid for their coffee cup independently.
With regard to the bacteria laden stir spoon mix, the only solution I can think of without having Tim Hortons spend too much money implementing a unit that sterilizes the spoons after each use would be to use plastic spoons but that’s up to Tim Hortons and depends on how much they actually want to make sure we don’t get sick by purchasing their products.
Simple isn’t it? You’d be surprised if you actually found out how many people got sick in late 2009 and early 2010 just because of a single visit to Tim Hortons.
I don’t know the actual numbers but only one sickness spread is one sickness to many.
I am not surprised, what makes them any different then any other food service entity? Buyer beware is all I can say! Disgusting about the nose picking, and there are more things I can think of that might be happening, including bored disgruntled employee’s, prankster and the likes. We remember the youtube video about dominos employees contaminating food right?
Someone should have “marketplace” do a story on them, then they might clean up their act.
No more Timmy’s for me!!!!
Yea I agree with Patricia, it’s majority of the restaurant business. With out naming anyone I would like to say that I worked as a line cook in a MAJOR restaurant that I can guarantee you all have eaten at many times and I was witness to several unsanitary acts.
Did you know that all employees must pass health and safety training PRIOR to hitting the floor, that we”re taught to wash our hands and change our gloves with every task change, that most of us make a conscious (sp chk) effort not to touch the mouth portion of the lid, that there’s a reason we use tandem teams so that the person with the dirtiest job (cash) is responsible for using that waxie to get your donut. That I would appreciate if you pointed out a concern while your looking at it rather than working up everyone here
It is not just restaurants. It is any food-handling place staffed by young, low-paid, employees. I worked with several young guys who bragged about how they used to spit in the batter for the muffins when they worked in the bakery department at Superstore. I am sure baking killed most germs, and cleaning staff usually bleach the heck out of tables and utensils when cleaning, but it is still a distasteful thought nonetheless.
The best part about it is that no one wants to admit that it’s highly possible that one could get sick simply from the Tim Hortons coffee lid. Straws are individually wrapped for a reason.
Also, are you telling me that there is no chance of germs being spread from passing my saliva infested winning roll-up-the-tim-stub to the Tim Hortons employee who picks it up with her bare fingers and tosses it into the cash register and THEN picks up a lid with those very same fingers?
Come on! Let’s face it…
This evening I walked into a Tim Hortons and had thought about this article. When I got to the counter I kindly asked the server to not stir my coffee (and i got strange looks, but that’s ok, I guess the request blew their minds) and she obliged. I then watched where she got my coffee lid from and it was the only one sitting in on the counter, upside down. She placed it on my coffee cup as usual and I unfortunately noticed it was wet and sandy (maybe sugar on the counter). I then took it off and showed her why I would like another coffee lid. She actually said “so, well it’s just water”.
Sorry, that’s not just water to some people and it wasn’t just water to me.
I’ll be going to Tim Hortons again in the future but I’ll be watching how their employees handle my food and coffee and I definitely won’t be allowing them to stir my coffee with that dirty stir spoon every again.
Sarah
This is so interesting because I worked at Timmies for a while and during that time there I saw a lot more unsanitary things then just the lids.If you have a weak stomach please do not read this.
I dont know how many times that i saw people dropping cups on the floor and still use them, or people grabbing timbits on the way by, licking their fingers and then making someones coffee.Lots of times I saw people drop lids in the ground and then still use them. I personally had that happpen to me. I dropped some lids on the ground and one of the managers walked by as I was about to throw them out, and told me to still use them and that it would be a waste to throw them away.The bakers do not use gloves! I saw one of them (he had bad acne) scratch his face and then pick up a donut! These are just a few of the examples that I have.It would take years to write all of them!
Would love to check how you do things in your house. Kids? HA! good luck. You write to the extreme. 10 years I have never picked my nose on shift or seen anyone else do it. My Employees are trained on food safety and are reprimanded or fired for infractions. Back to your bubble.
i work at tim’s and i can assure we are verrrrrrrrry careful about sanitation and stopping the spread of germs. i appreciate your article though, because it does reinstate the fact that our customers’ health and safety is important, and that they are always watching!!
please try not to pigeonhole tim horton’s employees, i work with many young adults and teenagers who are very conscious of their work environment, care about their jobs, and always try to keep things clean and safe.
I agree with a lot of things that have been said here,
Touching money and then touching the lid you are about to drink out of is gross indeed, but to solve this problem, tandem team are used to avoid it yes, but there is not always enough employees during a shift to avoid this issue. But to turn this issue around a bit, I believe most people go to Timmies for speed of service. Drive thru especially, and I personally think that a costumer does not pull over their car, wash their hands and then pull back their own lid take a slurp or take a bit of there bagel with their bare hands. As a driver, where are your hands before you ingest your purchase. Money, Steering wheel door handle your keys, think of it all. But this doesn’t just included drive thru, but at a in store experience at every food establishment, I would have to say from working in many food industries, a handful of people out of hundreds wash there hands before picking up there food, from doughnuts, sandwiches, pizza, hamburgers, chicken wings, ect. and then licking their fingers clean.
I truly believe that the employee that is serving you has been trained and is taking more precautions for food safety then the consumer.
But I do agree the ice cup idea sound gross,when you think of everything that could possibly happen to it, but I still stir my own coffee with it. Tim Horton standers to change the Ice cup every two hours is held in place at the store location I work at. I think a fly poopin in that cup is just as likely to happen, to any food item, from any where, at any time that you maybe are about to ingest.
I think everyone like to point fingers, look at your house hold, would a guest to your home point fingers at you when a fly lands on their hamburger before they eat it. I believe food and safety regulations are held highly in a food establishment, but does everyone follow them in our own home? Hell I drink expired milk all the time in my home, but as soon as those digits hit that date in a establishment its gone.
Making people think about what they are about to ingest is encouraging to bring people to become more aware of food born illness. It can only be a positive thing, but think where to look, Its not always the server, it can also be your own personal hygiene practices.
LOL –
I laughed my asse off at this article.
This is the funniest thing I have read in a very long time, due to a few specific points;
1) Is the author of this article still in school? You have no concept of how to punctuate the English language.
2) The assumptions nearly had me in tears of laughter.
3) Can I have some evidence of all of your findings?
4) Do you work for Starbucks?
This has actually made my stomach hurt from laughing so much. I look forward to my next double double ;D
I was a baker @Tim’s and I was personally very careful about santitation and cleanliness, but I know for a fact that other bakers were not so careful. And, I did see some things that disgusted me there, in back of house and front of house.
All I can say is that I am sure every food service place is the same, especially since they even pay the baker minimum wage and they are expected to do every single thing in that kitchen–donuts, biscuits, cookies, muffins, salads, soups, yogurts, chicken, etc., keep the front displays full, and wash dishes, take out the garbage and mop the floor, all for minimum wage.(the same pay as the girls getting the coffee out front) It is non-stop for 8 hours of being treated like a slave by the owners, supervisors and manager.
So, my suggestion to all who are concerned with perfect germ-free food service, do what I do—EAT AT HOME!!
Did you know that all employees must pass health and safety training PRIOR to hitting the floor, that we”re taught to wash our hands and change our gloves with every task change, that most of us make a conscious (sp chk) effort not to touch the mouth portion of the lid, that there’s a reason we use tandem teams so that the person with the dirtiest job (cash) is responsible for using that waxie to get your donut. That I would appreciate if you pointed out a concern while your looking at it rather than working up everyone here…
Well, I am also a former Tim Horton’s Employee and I can assure you not all Tim Horton’s establishments are as ‘unsanitary’ as some have made them to be.
I mean, of course you are going to come across some issues every now and then, but I know at my store, if we dropped lids or cups, we always threw them out, even if we had just swept and mopped the floor (which we did regularly – too often in my opinion). Also, it was strictly against the rules to walk by and eat the donuts carelessly while at the front counter. The one thing that could be an issue for some people is indeed the stirring spoons. I always changed the water+ice in the silver cups where the stirring spoons reside, but a lot of employees seemed to ignore that. Although, only coffees with more than 3 sugars (except for extra large) required stirring (For those of you who don’t know, the sugar and cream/milk is put into the cup before the coffee is poured in).
However, I must stress that hand-washing must go on more frequently than it currently is at most places.
You don’t know how you look to me
but if love was a crime you’d be a crook to me.
At almost all the Tim Hortons i’ve gone to i’ve noticed that they use the same spoon to stir your coffee ..after stirring it they put that spoon in a cup of water to rinse it off for the next customer and repeatedly use it …now ..several times when i TASTED my coffee and realized there wasn’t enough sugar in it ..they would take my cup that i had put my mouth on and add more sugar to it and then stir it with THAT SPOON !…now imagine a person with hepatitus doing the same thing i did and that spoon being put in that same cup of water for all other customers coffee…thats should bother a lot of people !
I think Tim Horton’s Does a great job there are always new measures to take to ensure food safety and I am sure they are looking at them.. There a fine establishment with a great product.
I have to disagree with some of this. I am 18, and I work in a Tim Horton’s. I can’t speak for all of the Tim’s in the world, but I can speak for my own. We are very sanitary at my Tim Horton’s. We wash our hands regularly, generally one person is on cash, the counters are washed frequently, due to regular spilling of coffee and cream among other things. Our gloves are NOT thin wax gloves, they are generally made of a non-allergenic rubber. The machines in the store are cleaned regularly, as are our pots. We also don’t use spoons, we use stir sticks. Oh, and before you harp on an entire age group, do your research. If anything I find the younger employees more cleanly then the older employees. I care deeply about sanitation, as I wouldn’t want dirty things served to me.
Even if alot of your assumptions were accurate, you’ve basically just named off things that happen often at almost every restaurant, coffee shop, or food outlet. To be honest, the way I see it, everyone is developing more and more of an irrational, paranoid fear of germs. I’ve worked in the restaurant and food service industry for ten years, and believe it or not, they do have these things called Health and Safety Regulations which you may have heard of, and better yet, Health Inspectors who make periodic, unannounced visits to make sure those regulations are being followed. But for the sake of argument let’s review a couple of your points anyway:
“At Time Hortons Donuts Virtually Every Employee Handles Money” and “There’s At Least One Tim Hortons Employee Per Shift That Picks Their Nose While On Shift”
No shit? Guess that means no free coffee for you, eh? Besides the fact they use wax gloves and wax paper to grab food, as you pointed out, have you considered the fact they keep hand sanitizer behind the counter? Because pretty much every other place that sells food or beverage does. Do you really think a place with that many employees that’s so highly monitored by other staff and the general public (not to mention possibly security cameras)is going to have staff doing things like picking their noses and spitting in the food going unnoticed? Or if they do, do you think most don’t wash or sanitize their hands afterward, whether it goes unnoticed or not?
Here’s a better question: Do you think it’s more likely that this happens more often at Tim Horton’s than at a privately owned restaurant or business without as many staff and customers constantly coming and going every which way? Either way, if you’re worried about someone picking their nose and serving your coffee at Tim’s without washing their hands, by logic you should be equally worried whenever you go to ANY restaurant, coffee shop, bar, etc that whoever just served you may have just gone to the washroom or picked their nose and not washed their hands.
I could go on and review the rest, but the rest of your points are so weak and laughable I won’t even bother.
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