New Survey Examines Wrap Rage: The Trouble with Jar Lids (2024)

Results from our new survey illustrate the near universal problem of struggling to open jar lids and some of the workarounds people use to access jarred products. Conducted in November 2021, the survey clearly establishes that stubborn jar lids are a source of frustration for consumers and points to a desire for easy to open jars.

The struggle with stubborn jar lids is real

Data from this survey illustrates what anecdotally has been clear for the last 75 years – jars can be hard to open.

• On average, 70% of respondents always (15%) or sometimes (55%) struggle to open jarred food items.
• More than 70% of consumers surveyed have friends and family who struggle to open jars.
• A large majority of respondents – 86% – report helping someone open a tight jar lid, and 72% report asking someone else to open a jar for them.

Workarounds to solve the problem abound

Not surprisingly, survey results show that consumers get creative in trying to solve the problem of hard to open jars. Survey respondents report using everything from mechanisms designed specifically to help open jars to do it yourself hacks like banging the jar lid against a counter.

• More than 50% of survey respondents indicated that they always (17%) or sometimes (36%) use devices such as a silicone jar lid gripper to open stubborn jar lids.
• When struggling to open a jar, a majority of respondents – 75% – said they resort to jar lid hacks like running the lid under hot water, banging the lid against the counter and using a knife to pry open the lid.
• These jar lid opening hacks can be dangerous, with 21% of respondents reporting that they have injured themselves using one of these hacks.

Brands should rethink packaging

Survey results suggest that consumers want solutions that eliminate the struggle to open jars and feel that brands should be adopting packaging that makes jar opening struggle-free.

• More than 66% of survey respondents said they would benefit from a jar lid that makes opening jars much easier.
• A majority of survey respondents – 57% – want jarred food brands to address the problem, indicating that these companies should rethink their packaging to make jars easier to open.

There is a solution

We developed a simple and effective solution to the relatable problem of hard-to-open jars. Our EEASY Lid is 40% easier to open than other jar lids, providing consumers with a better experience opening jars. The first jar lid innovation in 75 years, the EEASY Lid expands the market for manufacturers and retailers by making their jarred products usable for everyone!