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Is there any way of sanitizing the wooden sticks? I have the feeling they may become dirty once the package is opened and as this is will come into someone's mouth that's why I am asking.

BTW I purchased the ones saying food grade and came in a good sealed packaging.

FuzzyChef
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Natalia
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  • Welcome to the Cooking Stack. Please take a [tour] and visit the [help] for more information on this site and what makes a good question and answer. – bob1 May 30 '23 at 23:55
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    A clarifying question - if you like you can edit the answer into your question: What are you doing with the sticks after the package is opened - using more or less immediately? storing in a clean sealed container/packet/bag? Storing in an open packet (where?, how clean?)? – bob1 May 31 '23 at 00:01
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    do you sanitize your spices every time you open the jar to take out a spoonful? Do you sanitize your dishes when they sit in the cabinet for a few days? If it's food grade and they didn't get dirty specifically, nothing needs to be done. – Esther May 31 '23 at 18:09
  • bake them at 200F for 15 mins. – dandavis Jun 01 '23 at 23:47

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Dip them in a solution of sodium metabisulfite (beer bottle sterilizer), but really its overkill. Just don't open them all the way, take out what you're going to use and reseal the rest in a zip seal bag.

I don't think you will get ill from a popsicle stick unless it has been used before, or put somewhere that was dirty.

I do not think you need to worry if they are new and sealed but if you are concerned just clean them with the sanitizer as mentioned above and rinse it off

bob1
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richard
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    Welcome to the Cooking Stack. Please take a [tour] and visit the [help] for more information on this site and what makes a good question and answer. This is not a bad answer for minor surface contamination. Speaking as a microbiologist, the major problem here is lack of penetration into the wood for sanitizers - the same reason its recommended not to cut meat on wooden boards; you can't clean them sufficiently, but if deep penetration of contaminants was a problem, just throwing them out is easiest. – bob1 May 31 '23 at 04:54
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    @bob1 - it's not like the OP is saying the dog's been chewing them, after leaving them out in the yard for a week. tbh, I think we have an over-reaction to 'insidious & all-pervasive 'germs' perception', & really the answer is 'don't bother, they'll be just fine.' – Tetsujin May 31 '23 at 11:44