Our unhygienic cleaning habits

Kiwis are guilty of using their cleaning cloths on multiple surfaces, running the risk of cross contamination.

A recent survey conducted by 3M New Zealand revealed 27% of Kiwis use their kitchen cloths to clean sports shoes and 22% have no qualms about washing a pet bowl with the kitchen cloth they use to clean their dishes.

More than a third of the 1,200 participants confessed to questionable kitchen hygiene habits in their own homes, but they admitted to being less tolerant of dubious hygiene habits in other people’s homes.  While 39% say they wipe up a spill on the kitchen floor with their kitchen sponge and then use it to clean the dishes, 52% claim they would not accept a second invitation to dine at a friend’s house if they saw their friend doing the same thing.

While a kitchen sponge will withstand months of heavy usage, 3M’s researchers recommend immersing the sponge in boiling water for five minutes or running the sponge through the dishwasher (including the heated drying cycle), at least once a week but preferably daily. Sponges can also be sanitised with disinfectant or by boiling in hot water.

Source: 3M New Zealand, July 2008