Posts Tagged ‘Steel Drums’


Maxi Loves Honey

Monday, August 17th, 2015
Pure Honey

Pure Honey

We have all been reading about the decline of the honeybee population and Colony Collapse Disorder. Starting in October 2006, some beekeepers began reporting losses of 30-90 percent of their hives.

The decline of the honeybee population is a big problem because many agricultural crops worldwide are pollinated by honey bees. According to the Agriculture and Consumer Protection Department of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the worth of global crops with honeybee’s pollination was estimated to be close to $200 billion in 2005. Shortages of bees in the US have increased the cost to farmers renting them for pollination services by up to 20%.

Approximately 60% of US Honeybee’s are sent to California every Spring in Tractor Trailers to pollinate the Almond Crop. Some scientists have suggested that certain pesticides such as the neonicotinoid class of pesticides may be one of the culprits. These pesticides are widely used not only on big Midwestern crops like corn and soybeans but also on cotton, sorghum, sugar beets, apples, cherries, peaches, oranges, berries, leafy greens, tomatoes, and potatoes. They’re even common in yard and landscaping products

Despite all this, the number of commercial honeybee colonies has actually risen since 2006, from 2.4 million to 2.7 million in 2014, according to data tracked by the USDA. The 2014 numbers, which came out earlier this year, show that the number of managed colonies, that is, commercial honey-producing bee colonies managed by human beekeepers, is now the highest it’s been in 20 years.

How is this possible in the face of all the stresses on Honeybees? It is a triumph of market based capitalism. Beekeepers are increasing their number of hives in response to the doubling of retail honey prices since 2006.

Comercial Honey Bees

Commercial Honey Bees

Maxi Container is proud of our relationship with commercial bee keepers and processors. Each year we supply thousands of specially designed food grade steel drums to bee keepers throughout the midwest to ship their honey to processors. In addition the companies we work with support True Source Honey. Apparently some foreign companies have been selling large quantities of honey that was cut with high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners in the U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection have taken significant steps to thwart illegal trade of honey, including the seizure of more than 10 million pounds of rice syrup in 2011-2012 destined for sale as pure honey.

True Source Certified Honey, LLC has developed the True Source Certified™ voluntary system of traceability for those participants who wish to demonstrate through an independent third party that their sourcing practices are in full compliance with U.S. and international trade laws. This system permits honey to be tracked from the consumer back through the supply chain to the country of origin and the beekeeper that harvested the honey from the beehive. True Source is an industry-wide certification program with audits conducted by a third party to validate that honey is lawfully purchased, ethically sourced in a transparent and traceable manner, quality tested, handled safely and securely, and truthfully labeled. When a bottle of honey is marked with the True Source Certification label, it promises to uphold the standards consistent with the traceability requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011.

Maxi Loves Honey and we are proud to part of the Supply Chain for True Sourced Honey, keep an eye out for the True Source Certification Labels on honey in your area!


Unsung Heroes of Global Trade

Saturday, September 1st, 2012

A recent article by Tom Vanderbilt in Slate called the wooden pallet “the single most important object in the global economy. He claimed that  80% of U.S commerce is carried on pallets and that wood pallets account for  over 46% of U.S. hardwood production.

While the average U. S. consumer may only know wood pallets from their local Sam’s Club, COSTCO, or garden center, as a distributor of industrial packaging, we at Maxi Container, Inc. know just how important are wood pallets.  Almost all of our LTL shipments travel on wood pallets. We use wood pallets in our warehouse to help us properly stack the over 20,000 steel, plastic and fiber drums that we keep in stock. We also used old pallets to make our rain barrel stands that we sell at Green Fairs and through our mirainbarrel line of business.

However, after 20+ years in the industrial packaging business, I want to nominate another under recognized and often overlooked Unsung Hero of Global Commerce, the 55 gallon drum.  According to industry statistics over 24 million steel drums were reconditioned in the U.S. in 2011. In addition as of 2009 another 21 million new steel drums were manufactured in the U.S. As large as these numbers are, they do not include, Europe or Asia (including the emerging markets of China and India) were millions more steel drums are made and reconditioned.

Acids, adhesives, fuels, foods, hazardous and nonhazardous waste, oils and lubricants, paints and coatings, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and solvents are just some of the many items that are routinely shipped in 55 gallon steel drums. They myriad items shipped in steel drums continues to amaze me. Almost every product I see and use, at some point, was in a steel drum. Apple, orange and other fruit juices, Vanilla Extract, motor oil, gasoline, paint, adhesives, Window Cleaner and cleaners of all types, fragrances, soybean oil, chemicals to numerous to mention, used batteries and ballasts, soap and peanut butter to just name a few. As the pictures show, for every wood pallet, there are 4 steel drums. As I often say, without the 55 gallon steel drum industrialized society would grind to a halt.


Risks of deep frying a Turkey

Friday, November 4th, 2011

Deep fried turkey is delicious. When done right it is juicy, golden brown, and done much quicker than in the oven. If done wrong, you can sustain serious burns, damage your home and even die. According to data from the USFA, an estimated 2,000 Thanksgiving Day fires in residential buildings occur annually in the United States, resulting in an estimated average of 5 deaths, 25 injuries, and $21 million in property loss each year. The leading cause of all Thanksgiving Day fires in residential buildings is cooking. In addition, these fires occur most frequently in the afternoon hours from noon to 4 p.m. One article states the deep frying alone accounts for an average of 5 deaths, 60 injuries and more than $15 million in property damage can be attributed to deep fryers each year.

You can look at YouTube and see some of the results of people trying to deep fry a turkey and ending up with a fireball instead. Here are a few of my favorites:

  • Radio Show sets couch on fire.

There are many many more, just search “deep frying turkey disasters” or something along those lines to get the best results.

Every year at this time people come into our office and want to buy one of our smaller steel drums to build a deep fryer for their turkey. They are shocked when we tell them that none of our drums are appropriate for that use. While we have new food grade drums that make excellent smokers, barbecue grills, wood stoves, we feel that the danger and liability for a home made deep fryer is just too great.

So do yourself, and us, a favor. Soak you turkey in brine, inject it with marinade, cook it on a grill (that’s what I do), put it in a smoker, use different rubs or seasonings. Just do not ruin your Holidays by being one of those 5 deaths or 25 injuries. Enjoy this time with your family and friends. Build a fire in a fireplace, don’t turn your turkey into a fireball.


Michigan Charter School Receives Grant – To Build Rocket Heater

Friday, April 1st, 2011

Maxi Container received an inquiry about a new 30-gallon steel drum and when we found out what it would be used for our interest grew. Steve Quinlan, the Director of Institutional Advancement for Advanced Technology Academy in Dearborn explained that a senior class of students taking the course Sustainable Energy II would build the heater. A Rocket Heater, otherwise called a Rocket Stove or Rocket Mass Heater, combines the air-intake with the fuel-feed slot in an opening terminated by the combustion chamber, which connects to a chimney and also a heat exchanger. Simply put, a rocket stove has a fuel magazine but primarily works like a wood burning stove which uses the exhaust to heat a adobe clay housing. They are simple to build and yield high combustion efficiency, all while channeling the heat into a specific (small) area. The design of stove means it uses half as much fuel as an open fire and can also use smaller diameter wood even twigs. The stove is insulated and raised from the floor which reduces the danger of children burning themselves.Some uses for a a rocket heater are:

  • Cooking (mostly third-world countries)
  • Space heater
  • Water heater

Advanced Tech is one of Michigan’s green schools, (see our article about Michigan’s program for schools to earn different stewardship levels for completing green activities here.) and they are also a charter school.

After working out the details we setup a meeting on Monday March 21 at 1:30 PM where I (Joshua Rubin, Creative Director of Maxi) would drop off the drum and take a look at what is going on over at Advanced Tech.

Maxi wants to encourage other schools to contact us with any “green” projects or initiatives. From recycling in the classroom (see our Oprep article) to energy efficient rocket heaters seen here, we love to help schools. If we want to help reduce the next generations carbon footprint, we have to teach them early on to reduce, reuse, recycle, buy recycled products and safely dispose of their hazardous waste.

Thank you Advanced Tech for choosing Maxi, we wish you the best with your rocket heater project. Looking forward to seeing the pictures of the completed heater.

Sustainable Energy II Class with Joshua Rubin (Creative Director) and their new steel 30-gal drum.

For more information about Advanced Technology Academy and their programs please visit their website or send Steve Quinlan an email.


“@MaxiContainer: Thank you @…

Saturday, January 29th, 2011

“@MaxiContainer: Thank you @GreeningDet_com for all the support…now you can find us on their website at: http://t.co/9tD4GHU”


Thanx Windsor Barrel for the #…

Wednesday, January 26th, 2011

Thanx Windsor Barrel for the #DetroitPistons tickets, we’re going to be at the #Palace tonight for sure! Thanx Again! #Detroit #Pistons


#Detriot Check out our latest …

Wednesday, January 19th, 2011

#Detriot Check out our latest Blog entry here: http://t.co/oEpMcvz #sustainability #DrewUniversity #Labpacks #EPA #SafetyCabinets


Did you catch the article @Mar…

Wednesday, January 19th, 2011

Did you catch the article @MarketingSherpa wrote about Maxi? If not, check it out here: http://t.co/5RaMkJI #containers #detroit


Whats going on #twitter We wan…

Friday, January 14th, 2011

Whats going on #twitter We want to know what you are thinking about #sustainability what does it mean to you, your company? #ecofriendly


Check out our new and improved…

Friday, January 14th, 2011

Check out our new and improved January #eNewsletter http://goo.gl/vHCxZ sign up now to receive next months full of exciting industry #news


What have you used a #55gallon…

Thursday, January 13th, 2011

What have you used a #55gallondrum for…submit your entries to joshua@maxicontainer.com and you could be featured in our #eNewsletter !


If you haven’t already please …

Monday, January 10th, 2011

If you haven’t already please check this months #eNewsletter http://t.co/uDSkWOC


Stay warm this winter with a d…

Monday, January 10th, 2011

Stay warm this winter with a drum stove, check out the new flyer: http://t.co/h1zlWYn http://fb.me/Qrkc9Xi3


Today is national clean off yo…

Monday, January 10th, 2011

Today is national clean off your desk day: http://t.co/DoLRdrY


@Detroit Stay Warm this winter…

Monday, January 10th, 2011

@Detroit Stay Warm this winter! Check out our new #DrumStove Kit flyer: http://t.co/h1zlWYn


Check out our new and improved…

Thursday, January 6th, 2011

Check out our new and improved January #eNewsletter http://goo.gl/vHCxZ


Heading back home in the morni…

Saturday, January 1st, 2011

Heading back home in the morning…happy new years EVERYONE!!


Working on our new and improve…

Tuesday, December 21st, 2010

Working on our new and improved January 2010 eNewsletter – Now you can sign up right here on our Facebook page -… http://fb.me/Bid848Il


TweetDeck is pretty sweet on t…

Sunday, December 19th, 2010

TweetDeck is pretty sweet on the original droid


Did you know that Maxi stocks …

Thursday, December 16th, 2010

Did you know that Maxi stocks #HazardousWaste #Bags & #Boxes check it out: http://goo.gl/AhVGS