Food storage

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Say I order some of that freeze dried food - does it have to be stored at a certain temperature? Thanks.

-- Amy Leone (aleone@amp.com), August 18, 1998

Answers

Amy

Food stored in a garage that has a temperature of 90 F has a shelf life less than half of what could be obtained at room temperature (70 F). Your storage area should be located where the temperature can be kept above freezing but as cool as possible. This applies to both canned and dry foods.

-- Uncle Deedah (oncebitten@twiceshy.com), August 18, 1998.


Is this a good time to buy (store bought) canned food? Is it too early?

-- B T Martin (btmartin@west.net), August 21, 1998.

No it is not too early to start buying canned goods. I've noticed some expiration dates that are into 2001 already. Accoding to what I've read, canned goods will last well past their expiration date. I started buying canned goods a year ago and have been rotating. Some of those store brands are nasty so watch out. Buy several samples, taste them and choose your favorite. If you have to eat from a can, it might as well taste decent.

-- Dave (dave22@concentric.net), August 21, 1998.

I found that many of the canned items do not have dates but codes on them. If they have a phone number on the can you can call the company and they will tell you the expiration date but if there is no date the Internet is a good source to find phone numbers for companies. I have been surprised to find that some canned vegetables, Del Monte was one of them, they say has a 5 to 10 years shelf life. Star-Kist tuna was up to 5 years depending on the code on the can. But you need to check the expiration date based on the can's code. Though they want to sell their canned goods by two years these two companies( I amd sure there are others) say their canned food will last much longer.

-- Mike (mikellen@freenet.tlh.fl.us), August 24, 1998.

What if cans dont have expire dates, and no number to call, any other way to be sure of shelf life.

-- wondering (me@aol.com), October 09, 1998.


If food can't get frozen, any ideas of how to store it here in the Great White North? I expect to be able to heat a small living area; I don't think I'll have enough fuel to be able to heat our storage areas, too. 8-(

-- Tricia the Canuck (jayles@telusnet.net), October 09, 1998.

Tricia

I see that I was not entirely 100% exactly clear in my 1st post, dry food can be kept in a sub zero environment with no ill effects, it will in fact prolong the shelf life. The canned variety, however, may burst when frozen.

As to the question about shelf life of unmarked cans, as long as the can is not bulging, or does not spew out its contents when opened, it should be safe to eat. This does not mean that it will be tasty, or have its nutritional value intact, if it is really old.

-- Uncle Deedah (oncebitten@twiceshy.com), October 09, 1998.


Backwoods home magazine has a great article this month on food storage. "No matter what your neighbor or friends tell you, canned food will last nearly indefinately"..Goes on to give great examples and how to do things "simpley" Even says she has used driend milk from the store after being on shelf for 10 years and it was fine. It's a great reference article. Eg shortening, bought and kept sealed can last up to seven years and be fine.

I opened a box on instant dry milk this week end that I have had for 3 years going on 4. I did nothing special with it. I mixed it and it is just fine. I used it all weekend for mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs etc..Wanted to test things out.

Here's a thought that occurred to me. What if many of the "doomsday" y2k"ers have stock in long term food storage??????

Anyway, now that I have made you all mad...it was just a thought. Read the article it was good, dinty more beef stew sounds better all the time! I think preparation can be done alittle more conservatively than some people think.

DAC

-- deborah cunningham (dac@ccrtc.com), October 13, 1998.


Here's some information on grocery shelf life, expiration dates, and product codes: Storag e Life of Groceries

-- Max Dixon (Ogden, Utah USA) (Max.Dixon@gte.net), October 14, 1998.

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