Featured Content

  • Why don't packaged foods tell us when the contents will expire after the container is opened?

    Consumers often wonder why the answers to this question are not on the jars, bags, and boxes of foods they purchase.  One of the experts who serves on the Shelf Life Advice Advisory Board--food scientist Dr. Catherine Cutter-- has provided us with the following detailed explanation:

  • A CDC Article on Avoiding Food Poisoning

    [Editor's Note: Dear reader: I know you must be quite sick of hearing about germs that can make you sick.

  • Raw Sprouts: Nutritious and Dangerous

    SproutsOnce again, Shelf Life Advice wants to remind you that raw sprouts can be a risky food. They're often used to decorate summer sandwiches and they're also often contaminated with bacteria that cause food-borne illness.  Let's start with some reasons why sprouts are so susceptible to pathogens.

  • From Purchase to Storage, Tips on Extending Shelf Life

    Grocery ShoppingThe average American wastes more than 200 pounds of food a year, says the Consumer Reports ShopSmart magazine.  The Vegetarian Times website says, “Americans throw out 25% of the produce we buy because it’s gone bad.” What a pity! Ever wish you had a magic wand that could keep your food purchases safe and tasty until you’ve consumed the very last morsel or drop? It would be nice, but you don’t really need that wand.  If you select foods carefully, get your perishables home and refrigerated promptly, and wrap and store foods appropriately, you can extend the shelf life of your food purchases and thereby cut down on grocery shopping trips and food bills.

  • I Left It Out Too Long! Can I Still Eat It?

    cantaloupeFunny thing, but almost every question we get from our site members is a variation of the same question.  Optimists phrase it positively: “Can I still eat it?”  Pessimists ask, “Do I have to throw it out?”  In either case, it’s a query about food that has been kept too long in the “danger zone” (40°F-140°F), in other words, a perishable food that hasn’t been kept hot enough or cold enough to prevent bacterial growth. No one wants to discard food that cost a lot and/or took a long time to prepare.  So we did some research and asked two food scientists on the Shelf Life Advice Advisory Board to provide specific and general answers to “Is it really spoiled?” questions.

  • Why don't packaged foods tell us when the contents will expire after the container is opened?

    Consumers often wonder why the answers to this question are not on the jars, bags, and boxes of foods they purchase.  One of the experts who serve on the Shelf Life Advice Advisory Board--food scientist Dr. Catherine Cutter-- has provided us with the following detailed explanation:

  • Should Hot Food Go into the Fridge?

    Hot FoodCooking for a crowd?  Then chances are, you’re planning to prepare some hot dishes a day or two in advance.  Then, you may ask yourself, can my casserole go right from the oven into the fridge, or is that a bad idea?  This quandary actually poses 3 questions: 

     

    1) Will hot food damage my refrigerator?

     

    2) Will adding hot food harm my already refrigerated food? 

     

    3) Will immediate refrigeration be bad for the hot food?  We asked two members of our Advisory Board, Dr. Timothy Bowser, a food process engineer, and Dr. Karin Allen, a food scientist, to provide the answers.

  • “Myth-information” about Food Safety: You’d Better Not Believe It

    Food PyramidOne dictionary definition of a myth is a widely held belief that has not been proved.  However, as used today, the word usually refers to an idea that’s widespread but wrong. When the myth is about safe ways to handle food, it can also be unsafe.  The following myths were excerpted from an article created by Alaska’s Food Safety and Sanitation Program. The explanations debunking these myths can eradicate misconceptions you may have and help you operate your kitchen based upon scientific facts rather than fiction.

  • What is the best way to clean fruits and vegetables?

    All fruits and vegetables should be washed well with water. A scrub brush should also be used on for hard-skinned fruits (for example, apples and cantaloupe) and vegetables with irregular skins (such as squash and potatoes) Following these procedures will get them as clean as commercial washes.

  • Everything You Need to Know about Wrapping Food Right

    food storage Why wrap food? That’s easy to answer. We do it to prevent oxidation (interaction with oxygen that causes food to deteriorate), loss of moisture, discoloration, transfer of odors, and microbial cross-contamination.

     

    How best to wrap (or store) food?  That takes a lot more space to answer. The array of storage wraps, bags, and containers in the supermarket can leave one befuddled about what product is best for what purpose.  In addition to regular plastic wrap, today there are plastic wraps  and bags for freezing as well as plastic wrap that’s presumably microwave-safe  and wraps that clings better than the original versions (such as Saran Cling Plus).  There are plastic containers in a variety of sizes and shapes, some labeled microwave safe. Then there’s aluminum foil. (Don’t call it tin foil.  It isn’t made with tin anymore.) It comes in various lengths, widths, and strengths as well as a nonstick version and pop-up foil wrappers.

     

    Of all these wrapping products, what best protects your foods from air, pathogens, and each other? Click below  to reach 18 Q/As that tell how to extend the shelf life of foods and wrap them safely.

 
 

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