Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Nov. 18th Update This addition to my review is in response to recent comments including that of the Wonderbag Representative, C. Copeland, who wrote the statement,"Bacteria is killed once the food is brought to a boil, and simmered for long enough for the ingredients to be cooked through.", which implies cooked food no longer poses a health risk. If this statement was completely accurate, refrigeration of cooked foods would not be necessary, and local Health Dept's would not require food handling establishments to honor strict legal standards for public safety. Despite the fact that Wonderbag has been studied by independent labs, unless the results of a study can be Duplicated, they are not Valid for practical purposes. How many women in poor countries, where advanced education is rare, will likely be able to honor All of the exacting requirements that Wonderbag recommends in order to achieve safe results? The answer is obvious, very few, which is one of the reasons I felt compelled to write an honest review after conducting my own product research. I hold a Bachelors Degree in Nutrition and Food Science, am a member of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and am ServSafe Certified to work in any establishment that handles food for public consumption. I adhere to the strictest protocol for both Precision and Accuracy when conducting any food related research, especially for items such as the Wonderbag. When conducting my own experiments using the Wonderbag I carefully followed All the recommendations made by the manufacturer including the use of the smallest pot, and a stainless lid (versus a glass lid). The food temperatures after being left in the Wonderbag for the specified times in the recipes provided were Consistently Below the minimum 140'F recommendation of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the FDA, and the USDA. Unless a cooking product can reproduce Consistent results it is Not safe for food handling purposes. For this reason I am reluctantly downgrading my review from Three Stars to One Star, specifically for the purpose of warning other consumers who may not be as motivated as myself to use a thermometer when checking the doneness of their cooked foods. The CDC estimates that each year roughly 1 in 6 Americans (or 48 Million people) gets sick, 128,000 are Hospitalized, and 3,000 DIE of foodborne diseases in the United States alone.[CDC 2011] Although the Wonderbag works well for Transporting cooked foods, it is Not RELIABLE for the purpose of Cooking foods unless they have been so well cooked prior to render the use of the Wonderbag itself no longer a reasonable advantage. I do Not recommend using the Wonderbag to "hold" cooked foods either, for the same reasons. For those interested in alternative cooking methods that have proven both Reliable and Consistent, I highly recommend a SunOven, which are also sold by SunOven Intl. Inc here on Amazon for $294.00 (link below) All American Sun Oven Worlds OR direct from their website for $349.00. The SunOven has few moving parts, and tend to last indefinitely when handled carefully. The company also donates SunOvens to families/communities in poor countries. Original Review: The Wonderbag is a great idea that falls short in performance. I used it several times, following directions precisely to bring the food to a full boil for several minutes (time varies per recipe), but each time the temperature of food inside the bag fell below the minimum recommendation of 140' F. For my last attempt to cook in the bag I made sure to boil the chopped chicken for a full 20 minutes before placing the pot in the bag, and checked the temp immediately upon opening the pot 5 hours later > only 128' F. Because bacteria thrive between the temp of 40-140' F, known as the Danger Zone, this is a Food-borne illness waiting to happen; especially for dishes containing meat. For this reason I cannot recommend this product as a Slow Cooker, however, it does a great job as a caddy for transporting hot dishes. The padded bottom protects your hands while the separate pad that covers the top of a pan keeps lids snug, which tends to prevent spills inside the bag. I'm glad the company donates a Wonderbag for each purchased, however, I don't see how the claims of "leave your food to cook in the morning, and return at the end of the day to a hot meal" can possibly be true.