How Veg-Friendly is That Subway Knife?

I like Subway. It's the only fast food I eat. I haven't stepped foot in a McDonald's for over five years. It's nasty.

Subway's "eat fresh" works on me. You can see right in front of you what's going into your food - not too many secrets. Who knows what animal parts lurk in a McRib?

But one thing about Subway creeps me out, the knives they use to cut the sandwiches. They use the same knife to cut every sandwich. I think that's weird.

Here's why. I don't eat meat - yeah, I know some of you get annoyed when I say that, blah, blah, blah - so I only order a Veggie Delight; no cheese, no cold cuts, only vegetables, oil, and salt and pepper.

I don't have any religious or ethical reasons for not eating meat. I just think its healthier, period. But let's say you're not like me - lucky you - and you have strong moral objections to eating meat. Wouldn't you be upset if someone halved your veggie sandwich with the very same knife they just used to cleave through a half-pound of roast beef and melted cheese?

Listen, I know vegans. And they'd sooner cut your throat then let you touch their food with a knife that got within a 50-foot radius of any animal. Okay, before I get slammed, that's an obvious exaggeration. Calm down.

But you get the idea. Personally, I've never made a stink about the knife, mostly because I haven't seen my knife used on anything gross, like mayonnaise or bacon, but who knows what happened before I got there. Ugh, I don't want to think about it.

I don't know if Subway has an official knife cleaning policy, and I've never seen an employee balk at using any particular knife - or wash them for that matter - but as trivial as it may sound, isn't that dangerous?

Whether or not you consider an enraged vegan dangerous is one thing, but what if someone is allergic to stuff left on the knife?

Image credit: New York Post

Food Weird fast food Subway vegan vegetarian 5 Comments Lana on 30 Oct 2010

That is a health hazard. Imagine that tuna salad sandwich they just made was rotten and nobody noticed, next they move on to make your sandwich with the same knife, then you get sick. You should get the health inspector in there. There are all kinds of proper food handling policies about when to change utensils,how often to wash them etc. They are obviously violating those rules and procedures that are in place for a reason.

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