“Hands off my apple and other office kitchen rules”

• Put someone in charge to create the cleaning schedule or enforce the rules, says Jodi Smith, owner of Mannersmith Etiquette Consulting.
• Don't fill the fridge, freezer and pantry with so much food that no one else has space, says Lizzie Post, author of How Do You Work This Life Thing? and Emily Post's great-great granddaughter.
• Don't smash someone else's sandwich to make sure your Tupperware fit, Post says. Reorganize the contents of the fridge to make way for your containers.
• If it has no label, ask around to see if you can find out who it belongs to and then ask the person if you can have it, Post says. This goes for condiments as well, whether it's mustard or skim milk for coffee.
• Be responsible. If you know you are going on vacation for a week, do something with your food, Post says.

• The rule is: If you drink the last of the coffee, make a new pot, says Jacqueline Whitmore, author of Business Class: Etiquette Essentials for Success at Work.

• Know the rules on popcorn. Many offices have banned microwave popcorn because of the smell and the propensity to set off the smoke alarm, Smith says.
• Be conscious of other foods that have lingering smells.
• Do not cook meals in the microwave. "Office microwaves are meant for heating food – not cooking it," says April Masini, author of the advice column AskApril.com
• If food seeped or exploded out, clean it up immediately, Smith says.
• Never stop the microwave while someone else is using it, says Post – unless for a potential disaster.

• Wash your dish, or coffee mug, after using it and put it in the drying rack – unless there is someone hired to wash dishes, Smith says.

• Throw your trash away. Don't leave crumbs behind.
• Don't thaw food on the counter. It's a cleanliness and health issue, Whitmore says.

• If someone is stealing, talk to the boss and then bring it up at a staff meeting, Smith says. Say something like, "Someone is stealing my lunch and I'm going to ask that it's stopped."