Anyone else dealing with crates that just won't stop absorbing odors?

[Keith Bowen]

I'm honestly at my breaking point with this issue and I'm hoping someone here has found a solution because I've tried everything I can think of. We store all kinds of stuff in our facility, from fresh produce to marinated meats, and no matter how thoroughly we clean our crates between uses, there's always this lingering smell that seems to transfer onto whatever we put in them next. It's especially bad with the ones we use for onions and garlic, but even the general purpose ones have started developing this weird stale odor that I'm pretty sure is affecting the quality of our more delicate products. I came across some really helpful information in a guide about plastic packaging HACCP compliance that explained how porous surfaces can trap organic compounds and bacteria even after washing, which made me realize our standard cleaning routine probably isn't enough to actually eliminate the problem at its source. What I really need are some durable plastic crates for hygienic food storage UAE that are designed with non-porous materials and smooth surfaces that don't hold onto smells the way our current ones do, but I'm not sure if that's even a realistic expectation or if all plastic eventually ends up smelling after enough use. Has anyone found a particular type of plastic or a specific brand that actually resists odor absorption, or is this just something we all have to accept as a cost of doing business? I'm willing to invest in better quality if it actually solves the problem, but I don't want to throw money at something that's going to end up smelling just as bad six months down the line.