How To: Deter coworkers from stealing your lunch

There's nothing more maddening than opening the office fridge and discovering your lunch is gone. Put an end to the stealing with some of these strategies. This video will show you how to deter coworkers from stealing your lunch.

Step 1. Label it

Put your name on your lunch. People are much less likely to pilfer food when they know who they're stealing from.

Step 2. Sneak tape into it

Sneak a piece of tape into your meal. You'll know to remove it before eating, but a thief will get a nasty surprise when they bite down on it.

Step 3. Hide the contents

Make your lunch difficult to identify. Wrap it in foil, then duct tape it in butcher paper, then put it in a sealable sandwich bag, and then stick it in a small shopping bag. Office thieves will have no idea if your lunch is worth stealing, and no easy way to find out.

Step 4. Catch sticky fingers

Catch sticky fingers by applying a thin layer of super-strong glue to the bag containing your lunch. Just remember to protect your own fingers when you retrieve it!

Don't want to risk fusing the fingers of an innocent? Smear some petroleum jelly on it instead. Not knowing what they're touching, the thief will likely recoil in disgust.

Step 5. Make it look moldy

Apply a few strategically placed blotches of green paint or nail polish to the outside of a standard plastic sandwich bag. At first glance, it will make a sandwich look like it's been in the fridge so long it's gone moldy.

Step 6. Keep your lunch with you

If all else fails, invest in an insulated lunch bag to keep at your desk. Then you just have to hope the lunch thief isn't brazen enough to steal it right out from under you!

FACT: Forty-four percent of office refrigerators are cleaned monthly and 22 percent are cleaned only once or twice a year, according to one survey.