Thanks for all the responses. To be clear, I do NOT carry used or partially burned tabs - only new ones. I also carry a small, folding Ti stove/pot holder, and a metal cup. They are carried for two purposes. The first, as was mentioned by rockchucker22, is to boil a cup of water for coffee, tea, soup, or a small hot snack during the course of a hike. The other function, pointed out by OregonMouse, is to be able to start a fire under the most adverse conditions if forced to spend an unplanned night out, due to illness, accident, or injury. The "boiling kit" lives in the pack, and may reside there for weeks or even months. My goal is to find a way to contain the odor so it won't permeate the other gear in the pack, or the pack material itself. If I can't find a solution, the only other option I see is to remove the kit after each trip and remember (with the aging process, an ever increasing challenge) to replace it before going out on another hike.

Again, thanks.