Lid featuring ease of use and improved release from a tray or container

A method for releasing a lid from engagement with a container base comprising the steps of:

• providing a container assembly that includes said lid engaged with said container base, the lid including a lid engagement feature proximal to a peripheral boundary of the lid, said lid engagement feature being engaged in mutual cooperation with a base engagement feature provided in the container base, a first graspable member and a second graspable member being attached to the lid proximal to the peripheral boundary of the lid in locations that are not directly opposite to each other, each of said graspable members extending beyond the peripheral boundary of the container base, a first press location being cooperative with the first graspable member and a second press location being cooperative with the second graspable member;
• flexing the first graspable member while pressing on the first press location, said flexing and pressing being performed manually via a user's first hand, thereby rotating the first graspable member upward and disengaging a first portion of the lid engagement feature from a corresponding first portion of the base engagement feature, creating a first region of disengagement therebetween;
• flexing the second graspable member while pressing on the second press location, said flexing and pressing being performed manually via the user's second hand, thereby rotating the second graspable member upward and disengaging a second portion of the lid engagement feature from a corresponding second portion of the base engagement feature, creating a second region of disengagement therebetween;
• and
• removing the lid from the container base by lifting said lid away from said container base.

A method for using and opening a container assembly, said method comprising the steps of:

• engaging a lid with a container base by cooperatively locking a lid engagement feature provided in the lid proximal to a peripheral boundary of the lid, with a base engagement feature provided in the container base proximal to a peripheral boundary of the container base, a first graspable member and a second graspable member being attached to the lid proximal to the peripheral boundary of the lid in locations that are not directly opposite to each other, each of said graspable members extending beyond the peripheral boundary of the container base;
• flexing the first graspable member manually via a user's first hand, thereby rotating the first graspable member upward and disengaging a first portion of the lid engagement feature from a corresponding first portion of the base engagement feature, creating a first region of disengagement therebetween;
• flexing the second graspable member manually via the user's second hand, thereby rotating the second graspable member upward and disengaging a second portion of the lid engagement feature from a corresponding second portion of the base engagement feature, creating a second region of initial disengagement therebetween;
• the step of flexing the second graspable member being performed concurrently with the step of flexing first graspable member;
• and
• removing the lid from the container base by lifting the lid away from said container base.