Why Everyone Should Keep an Empty Sugar Bag on Hand

I am continuously fighting my hoarding tendencies, which is why I usually shy away from the “10 great uses for old twist-ties” genre of hacks — and yet here I am, telling you to keep an empty sugar bag on hand, particularly if you are a little bit clumsy (or have clumsy children, clumsy pets, or a clumsy significant other).

The suggestion is one of health and safety, and comes to us via one of my beloved Twitter mutuals, who keeps an empty sugar bag around for the sole purpose of disposing of broken glass. (My Twitter friends seriously have the best hacks!)

@clairelizzie I also keep an empty sugar bag around in case of broken glass—it’s double-layer thick paper, which is safer than a plastic bag for shards!

— Sacha (she/her) (@zigged) July 19, 2021

As Sacha explains in her tweet, a thick, double-layered paper bag makes a much safer repository for broken glass than a plastic bag. When I asked Sacha where she got the idea, and she told me it came from her own brilliant brain:

I thought of it myself! Coming from a family with hoarding tendencies + having safety mindset drilled in while working in a QC lab = the occasional household hack like this.

This is an ingenious use of something I would usually toss into the recycling bin without a second thought. Broken glass, as we all know, is very sharp, and I am always concerned about it poking through a garbage bag and causing a silly injury or, at the very least, an annoying mess, whether for me or for a sanitation worker. A thick, double-layered paper bag prevents such tragedies.

Keeping an empty bag around just in case you break a glass may seem overly cautious, but paper sugar bags don’t take up very much room. If you have kids — or hyperactive pets — it’s always best to be prepared for glass breakage. (Though honestly, I was no stranger to the occasional broken glass item even before I got my rambunctious dog. I am very clumsy.)