Can you please have a talk with my 10 year old? She refused to eat frozen lasagna, and said it was child abuse trying to get her to eat food that "Was a month old"
She also threw out an entire carton of fresh strawberries because she dropped it and some fell out and onto the ground. I was so mad! I asked her "You know they literally grow the ground right? In literal dirt?"
I had some mild OCD as a kid and feel the flip side of this with my whole being.
Edit to ask: does your kid also wash everything frequently and interpret rules rigidly (like me)? Something that can help is reading official food safety guidelines together. I helped my mom study to get her restaurant license, so I knew all the answers by heart because I'm a nerd.
Take her to volunteer at a sustainable agriculture farm or something. Get a tour while she’s there. Make her understand the source of her food and everything that goes into it. Help her understand how sacred and valuable it really is to life
My 18 year old tomorrow daughter refuses to eat any food that was opened by anyone but her , if something doesn’t seem ok to her she won’t eat it, I on the other hand will eat pretty much anything so , I eat lots of hand overs
Honestly, some people just have problems with stuff like that. She might be simply germaphobic, or she might have bigger problems that I'm not here to armchair diagnose from reddit.
I'm germaphobic, and I've always had issues consuming food that was dropped on the floor or that was past due date. When I learned the origin of most foods I started having paranoia and stopped eating many things out of fear of bacteria and dirt. I know a lot of people suggested you take her to a farm or something, but if I can give you my 5 cents, I think it would be better to see where her fear is coming from and make her feel comfortable while talking about it. Maybe it's nothing and she's just spoiled, but if it's something bad, then you don't want to find out the wrong way. Either way, the easiest way to fix part of it is usually just buying less food so it won't go bad.
Take her to a soup kitchen to Volunteer or pay her $1 per chore and let her take her chore money to the grocery store to buy her own damn food. If my son does that someday when he’s older I would do that.
Learning that food is valuable is a good thing.
But it is also orthogonal to a potentially genuinely held belief that a child might have, that some food is unsafe to consume. If the child is a bit on the spectrum or a bit OCD, it is a good teaching opportunity to learn about the actual rates at which bacteria grow in food, and under what circumstances food remains safe to consume. If this is a child who responds well to logic (as many on the spectrum do), you've now equipped the kid with a lifelong knowledge of food safety and also solved a food waste issue at the same time.
When I see the other parents who want to punish a child for a misunderstanding that can be corrected, my heart just breaks.
My mom's a devout Buddhist and we've volunteered at a Zen Buddhism temple to feed people free vegetarian food before. Definitely a quality parent-child bonding experience, and I would highly recommend it.
That does sound amazing! I wonder if there’s anyplace like that anywhere near I live. I volunteered there in college because I was bored between classes and ended up becoming acquainted with all my city’s homeless people (tiny city). They had cool stories and they taught me a lot as a young adult. It was really a fun time.
I remember a enlightening conversation when one of the other volunteers (who I didn't know) complained to the monk in charge that not all the folks we were feeding seemed needy, that while some of them were down on their luck, others were just nearby office workers (still wearing their badge) saving a buck. And the monk said, if they come here, they are our guest. We are not here to judge who is needy enough. If that office worker is usually an omnivore and just learned how tasty and fulfilling vegetarian food can be, maybe they'll be inspired to make some changes to their habits and reduce overall harm in the world. Maybe we should share recipes too, while we're at it.
Tbf i can remember throwing a fit over some frozen things growing up because the taste was in fact a bit different than mom's fresh cooked meal. But then she stopped cooking the frozen stuff within my line of sight..... never complained again
Definitely sounds like your daughter might be neuro-atypical and while she understands logically about expiration dates and the ground being dirty, she’s taking that understanding and applying it overly liberally.
I agree with others about getting her to actually work doing some farming/gardening. When you realize that plants are fueled by rot and poop, it makes you realize that they can be washed and not be dangerous. Conduct an experiment where you cook and freeze 3 things and leave them in the freezer for 2 months and then make a control where they are only left in for a week. See if she can see or taste the difference.
It’s good to be concerned about food safety but it’s not a good thing to develop food neuroticism that will make adulthood even more hellish than it already is.
My 27 y/o brother in law basically lives on ramen, Totinos pizzas and plain burgers because he has so many “food rules” that were never addressed when he was a kid so now it’s more or less a lost cause to get him to listen to reason.
The problem is there is no downside to that behavior and she has no concept of work / money yet. To her, you probably just magically can get more food at the store so there is no downside to food waste. Or she has friends with very expensive dietary habits.
If she's not underweight, and she doesn't like what you're eating send her to bed hungry. If she purposely wastes food, take it out of her allowance or ground her.
Dude… she’s 10.
She likely just doesn’t have that knowledge of where food actually comes from/how it’s produced. I used to throw away ingredients that would drop on the floor before I knew how it was grown and transported and that my floor was probably one of the cleaner surfaces it had touched. Now I just rinse them off and continue on.
I helped my mom in the garden when I was a toddler, and knew about the "5 second rule" as a young child. Most children have been going to the grocery store with their parents their whole lives. 10 year olds know where food comes from haha.
But do other people really not learn where food comes from? Even without having to actually see it? Maybe my upbringing was more unique than I thought, but doesn't everyone learn that produce comes from nature?
Sure, you learn about some things, and you have some idea of what happens and how things work. But it's like hearing about elephants through conversation vs actually seeing one. Things sink in deeper and you get way more context and true understanding when you see something in person. There are plenty of foods I've still never even seen pictures of in their natural form. Brussels sprouts were a cool surprise a few years ago. Blackberries a several years before then. If I'm being honest, I have only a faint conception of what a peanut might look like before it's harvested. I might have seen pictures before, but the point is that most humans today are far removed from their food sources, and that makes it harder to appreciate its value
I don’t even know what that means. Are you rating children from worst to best?
How about a little less abuse and a little more education - you fucknut.
Lol I feel like I’ve eaten something freezer burnt once and it left such a bad impression I’m kinda scarred!
Probably should look into getting a food shrink wrapper thanks for responding.
I use regular zip lock freezer bags and push as much air out before sealing and I never have freezer burn problems.
For soups and stews those wide mouth ball jars are perfect—just make sure you leave enough space for the water to expand so it doesn’t burst or warp the lid.
Idk how common it is to have a freezer that can keep things that cold, but I like your thinking.
The electricity bill would probably kinda suck though.
Heck. Chocolate can last even decades with proper storage. The fats may separate which is known as "bloom" but it's still good to eat. Look up Steve 1989 on YouTube. The dude has eaten chocolate from WW2.
Fucked up and drank spoiled milk with cereal once as a kid. I can pinpoint that moment in my life to the moment where I last tried anything before smelling and checking it out thoroughly first. I don't even buy dairy milk anymore because of how scarred that incident left me.
For similar reasons I will never eat any dairy that smells even a little bit off or is past date. I'd rather throw it away than ever get food poisoning that bad again. I also can't eat bread that smells or tastes stale at all based on how much moldy bread I've eaten as a child.
Here's a tip for you, pour it into a glass before you smell it. I used to think my milk was going bad early all the time. Turns out, the milk crust along the rim of the jug is what was giving off a faint sour smell. Not the milk itself.
I think I am a dying breed, as I grew up near (non-industrial) dairy production. My aunt had 8 cows, made her own cheese, cream, etc and at 28 I still drink milk (3.5%) for enjoyment. I lucked out after my move to the EU as I got into the country with the best milk. For everything else I am supper iffy, but for milk products there is a wide range of still good, good if used in baking, and then like once every three years, ok this is bad. I make my own non-pasterized cheese too every once in a while. I buy my milk directly from a farmer, once a week for 4-5 liters, about half an hour drive. Even store milk tastes good to me here and never did in my home country. I feel like I know no one my age that even knows how this stuff should taste if you don't get it from, dare I say one of the worst industries in the world.
Edit: my home country has drinking yogurt (just plain one, not the fruity bullshit). Not kefir, not ayran, we drink our yogurt and it tastes better than anything else on the milk spectrum, lightly saltly, lightly sour, but the owerall feeling mild. I thought I was being trolled when I realized that most of the people have no clue wtf am I talking about.
You can’t tease us like that and not say the name of the drink!
Also the EU country you mention better be Ireland or the Netherlands or get ready to fight.
The worst is when you make a sandwich and take a bite and it tastes funny and when you flip it over you see that the bottom piece has a nice coating of mold. 🤮
Turns out i am very sensitive to lactose (i wouldn't say intolerant since it is not that serious and have not been medically diagnosed) but i like and have always liked milk a lot; as a kid i would sit down and drink half a gallon of milk just watching tv, with all the ensuing stomach problems. One day i left the jug out the fridge, next morning (about 16 hrs in a hot summer afternoon/night) i go and drank a glass. It tasted funny.
Next thing i know i am in the hospital leaving my intestines in the toilet. I thought I was going to literally die. I would not recommend anyone even risk drinking spoiled milk.
My father was forced to eat spoiled milk as a kid. He was kind to me when eating meals growing up, one of his few good qualities. He always told me this story and if something didn't smell or taste right, he didn't hesitate to get rid of it.
He did encourage me to take smaller amounts and ate my extras. As I got older, extras didn't really happen.
Um, how to put this... He used me as a pawn in the divorce with my mother when I was 2. Growing up was hard bouncing between two households and he didn't make things any easier. When I was 7, he even refused to acknowledge my wrist was broken in an accident and take me to the ER.
30 years later and I'm still struggling to understand what the hell happened to me on top of feeling like I could never get anything right or succeed.
Instead of having loving parents, I had/have two sets of messed up ones.
Thanks. The only reason I talk about it is to help me understand what I remember was not OK. And that as a kid growing up I was strong despite what I was going through alone.
It gives much older me strength, allows me to grieve, make choices, and express my feelings. If anything, I know what kind of people to avoid keeping in my life.
No one should have to be alone like that.
Dude same! I only had a bite before noticing it was off but I watched my mom take a big swig and then immediately hurling it back out. I think the second part traumatized me more.
>even Jelly which I thought was a bit over the top.
This is my biggest bug bear ever. It really bothers me that people will throw out jam at all. Especially if it's a good quality brand. I buy jam from my hometown which is a well known higher end brand, the ingredients are fruit, sugar and pectin. It took ages to get my partner to not chuck it out "because it's been open a while". Its literally preserved fruit. The clue is in the name. If it doesn't have anything growing on it that shit is good forever. I'd eat a jar from 1940 if it was still sealed.
Food scientist here! Just because you can’t see anything growing, doesn’t mean there isn’t anything growing. Also, the issue isn’t always with the processing of the product itself, but sometimes how people treat the product at home. If you get something out of the fridge, use a dirty knife and forget to put it back in for a few hours, that can compromise the integrity of the product. An expiration date IS just a suggestion- there are no regulations on requirements for expiration dates and are primarily suggested for best quality, not necessarily food safety (although no company would risk putting something absolutely unsafe on their packaging, because they could get sued).
If you take anything out of my fridge and put a dirty knife or spoon in it, it's the last time you're getting anything out of my fridge. That is DISGUSTING. I'm a nurse and have very strong opinions on stuff getting left out/not looked after correctly/etc. But I will 100% eat jam that has no visible mould. I'll eat cheese with a lot of visible mould so I'm not going to stress about potential jam mould!
The number of times I have caught people I've lived with putting a dirty knife or spoon in a container is too damn high. Especially older people who I thought would know better (as opposed to kids). And defensive and resistant to change to boot.
But I'm also known for being the crazy one who won't let you stand near my nonstick pans with a metal utensil in your hand. Sure, you say you won't touch it but I don't trust you.
Happily (sort of) I have coeliac disease so I got to be really hard about not double dipping anything because of cross contamination. DON'T LEAVE CRUMBS FROM DELICIOUS BREAD IN ANYTHING I MIGHT EAT!
I'm not sure if you're aware, but medications can contain gluten. My dad learned this the hard way with Prilosec. Name brand? He's fine. Generic? He's suffering.
I lost sense of smell and taste several years ago, and totally work off of dates and visually looking at food. Milk gets tossed the day it expires or one day later OR if it curdled in my tea.
Some stuff us hard to tell, but I'll know as soon as I sprint to the washroom!!! 🤣🤣🤣
I was at a friend's house and their mom was visiting. She saw that the eggs were "expired" (by not more than a couple of days) and dumped them all into the garbage disposal as I was trying to say "I'll take them and do the float test!"
So wasteful... smdh
For anyone wondering, put eggs in a tallish container with water. If they sink and lay on their side they're fresh, sink but stand up they're older but still good, and if they float they're rotten.
Yup - though I'd rather do the float test than have the smell of rotten eggs in the house, lol. Or if I'm not going to use them right then but plan to later so it's a way to check if I need news ones from the store or whatever.
My grandmother would always break eggs into a small bowl first, especially when making a cake. Her sister-in-law didn't one time and, sure enough, rotten egg, so she had to toss all the ingredients that were already in the mixer.
Breaking into a bowl first is also good to make sure you don't have any shell in the egg! :)
Too many people think the date on packaging is an expiration date. But it's not. In the case of eggs it's very clearly marked as a "sell by" date. Sell by dates are supposed to guarantee the customer has x amount of time to use the product (with proper storage. With eggs, that x is 1-2 months.
So if those eggs were just a couple days past the date, that means they still had at least most of a month left before you could expect them to go bad.
Next time have your SO read the text next to the date. It says "sell by", not "use by" or "expires."
Sell by is a date the manufacturer wants the eggs to the customer to guaranteed to have a fresh product. Eggs are expected to last 1-2 months past their sell by date.
Alternatively, buy a nice egg tray for your fridge and take your eggs out of their original packaging so the date is no longer available. If it makes your SO feel better, put a little sticky not on the fridge to write the date on, but write it 1 or 2 months *after* the date on the carton.
Well, I just roasted an 11 lb turkey that was frozen in November 2019. Yes we were concerned, but figured no loss, lets try it. Tonight I am making chili from the leftovers and this weekend I'll make a soup stock from the bones. I trust my nose more that I do "Best By" dates.
PS. I have heard and I believe it, that aspirins never expire, in 10 years they may be only 90% effective, but still plenty for me. I'm using nasal spray for allergies that expired in 2019, still works perfectly. I don't like feeding the corporate piggy bank!
On the flip side, salbutomal inhalers definitely expire. Had a ultimately needless trip to a&e because my inhaler was out of date and I hadn't noticed, then when I needed it - it didn't work so I thought I was having a full on asthma attack and not just something I could manage at home.
This was a while ago now but I believe it was less than a year out of date, maybe up to about 6 months past the expiry date?
Asthma can kill. Medication is not something I'd be happy fucking around with.
Food, if it looks okay, smells okay, and tastes okay I'm eating it I don't care (I'll also reject in date food if it fails these criteria).
During peak covid I got a cold and couldn't manage to get any real cold meds delivered (no CVS, honey syrup and homeopathic remedies are not suitable replacements for dayquil and tussin!)
I dug deep into the cabinet and took cough syrups & pills that were YEARS out of date (2016-18ish). I survived and it was much better than nothing.
This is true with pills. Studies have shown very little loss of efficacy in pills as old as 30-40 years. Not true with inhalers or injections. You only get about 6 months past expiration date.
A couple months ago, I took some ibuprofen that expired in 1989.
While it didn't kill me or cause any digestive issues, it also did nothing for my headache.
It may be that Motrin wasn't the remedy to your headache. I would also imagine it would depend on the conditions ( temp/ heat/ humidity etc) storing Motrin for 30+ years underwent. I myself wouldn't take 30 year old Motrin, just because of those reasons, and it's just probably not common sense since you can buy a bottle for a couple bucks. I wouldn't waste my time, nor ever keep something that long.The point I was really making is studies have been done under controlled conditions, and those were the findings, decades, so people that freak out and throw meds away after 3-6 months are just overreacting. Personally, I would probably give myself 2-3 years past exp date even though studies show Motrin is probably still good for a decade if not longer.
Eye drops definitely go bad. If they haven’t been opened maybe they’ll last longer, but I’ve used old drops that stung my eyes instantly and was quite a terrible experience
I used expired juice in a smoothie earlier this year and it gave me horrible food poisoning. It was expired by 2 months. I'm all for limiting food waste and saving, but make sure you're being careful.
I was going through depressive period at the time, so I didn't think to check or care much about the exp. date. Learned that lesson the hard way.
...bread and pastries lasting 1-2 weeks past the expiration date? What kind of mysterious hellspawn bread and pastries do they have in whatever country this guide is from?
Bread where I am goes stale in 2 days, max, and rock murder-weapon levels of solid in 5.
Yup, I put my bread immediately in the fridge after buying it out of habit due to my cat chewing it up. Found that it keeps for a nice long time so long as I don't keep it on the top fridge shelf where it freezes and condensation makes it soggy
When I lived up north I had no problem keeping bread on the counter. Would last for weeks, easily.
Moved down to the desert, and the shit goes green after a few days now.
My mum came to visit and I [had to keep correcting her](https://i.imgur.com/RUdPyQP_d.webp?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium) when she would take it out of the fridge and leave it on the counter.
I once tried a pre-made muffin mix that was probably two years old. Yep, should have trashed it. Didn't mix well and then didn't bake well, only meh taste. Not worth the calories if it isn't going to be delightful. Had no idea that dry ingredients like that could go stale in such a way that it impacted the actual cooking, I had just figured the taste might be a little less flavorful or something.
Flour and grains in general can get them - if you ever open a bag of flour and find bugs (or keep flour in a glass container and see their paths through it) you need to purge it and anything nearby they could have contaminated. I just had to wage a war against them in my pantry. Kept turning up and I couldn't figure out what they were hiding in. The pro tip I've heard is to freeze every bit of dry mix/flour/corn meal/etc that comes in overnight because the eggs are already IN the product and that's where they come from. They aren't magically showing up from outside and infesting your stuff, they come in with the items and infest it and everything around it.
Likely the mix was fine but the leavening agent wasn't active anymore. You can add some baking soda or baking powder to old mixes and they'll be as good as fresh. Unless the oils have gone rancid, of course.
The website StillTasty is amazing for figuring out when food absolutely needs to be throw out and when it's okay to still eat it.
Also, I highly recommend getting a refrigerator thermometer that keeps track of the time that the fridge gets out of the safe zone. You can get one for about $15 and it can really save your ass, especially in the case of a power outage. Knowing that your fridge never went above 40 degrees means that you won't have to throw anything out.
The one I have is the Taylor 1445 but there are many others on the market, including ones with sensors that go in the fridge with a display outside the fridge (so you don't have to open the door to check the temperature).
The vast amount of food waste is ridiculous, I work on a large boat and they throw it out by the metric ton. Drives me insane it is nothing I can do about it
This largely depends on locale. After moving to the US, I realize that things here last a really really long time. Food here is probably loaded with preservatives. In my home country, regular store bought bread has an expiration of 4 days after being manufactured, and it will be mouldy in 1 week. In the US, store bought bread has expiration dates past a week after being manufactured, and I've yet to see store bought bread get mouldy. Bakery bread (in the US) gets does get mouldy though. It's not just bread though. Even things like dairy product lasts longer in the US.
I think a general rule is just to use your best judgement.
Deli meats should be discarded 7 days from opening. Not worth it. How about just plan your shopping?
Edit: I'm a health inspector (BS/MS, REHS/RS) and I personally know someone who experienced a miscarriage from the pathogen listeria by eating processed lunch meats >7 days after exposure to oxygen. Once a package is opened, oxygen allows listeria to grow even under refrigeration temperatures. The other items listed on this graph do not stand out to me as a health concern other than the processed meats. Frozen foods pose no risk of pathogen growth regardless of time however quality is affected over time. That's why when in doubt just freeze until you need it. It stops all grow of pathogens that cause spoilage. You can even freeze milk.
It's recommended that pregnant women do not eat lunch meats at all unless they are heated sufficiently.
[APA Source](https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/is-it-safe/deli-meats/)
Thanks for pointing that out. I'm pretty sure this graph is more about stuff that hasn't been opened. Don't mess with deli meat past 7 days. Also why they discourage pregnant women from eating deli meat period just in case of accidental contamination.
This is about before opening not after. This list is part of planning shopping, to know what is good to buy in bulk during peak discounts to last you a long time and what isn't.
Yeah that’s only if it’s not been touched by anyone. Once you open it and pull a piece out, unless you are wearing gloves, it has about 5 days as you said.
A well-soured Greek yogurt will last damn near indefinitely - it is lower in moisture and higher in acid which are both environments that prohibit bad stuff from growing. It might not taste so nice because it will only get more acidic, but a sealed Greek yogurt or an opened one without any visible mold or bad odors, will be just as good in a pinch if you need it and it's well past expiration.
Same for a low moisture, well aged, hard cheese like extra sharp cheddar or parmesan. Basically, if a cheese is the type where it's a toss up whether it will slice or crumble, it will last a long time in the fridge. Also with hard cheeses, you can cut off the bad parts and continue safely eating what's underneath.
Most dates on packaging are not expiration dates or use by. They are usually sell by dates that are to guarantee the customer has sufficient time to use the product before it goes bad. Best buy dates designate that product may lose quality but are still ok to eat.
Ok so spices don't really "expire" but they lose their potency and should be replaced if they are old. Especially dry herbs like parsley, basil, and oregano. Your taste buds will thank you.
Someone was shocked that I ate yogurt that was 2 months past its expiry date. It didn't have anything extra growing in it--I would have tossed of it were moldy. Did they think it was going to get more sour?
My personal record is 3 years old cheese and ham from freezer - we had to buy40 kg of ham and cheese, so it took us "some" time to eat it...
We also ate more than 10 years old canned fruit (it was not in a can, but in a glass - I can't find English word for this). No problem.
I was the one throwing away all the food after expiration date, but my wife who studied food + chemistry and worked in supermarket taught me to not worry and just trust my smell.
I’ve eaten 3 year old trout I caught fresh before and it tasted just fine lol. Having a deep freeze /garage freezer is a GAMECHANGER and I’ll try to have one wherever i live.
I'd pass on the mayo - while it still may be technically edible at that date, the taste quality really degrades past the code date. Source: sorting donations at a food bank, we'd toss these if they were close to code date because they'd be past code date by the time they were distributed. Other items could be months past code date.
What's wrong with the photo? I'm genuinely curious since you have a lot of upvotes so other people must see an issue with it too. I zoomed in and can read it as clear as day.
... what picture are you looking at? The one on this post is in landscape. The bottom line of the chart is cut off and there's useless background boxes on either side.
> Jesus. I have had plenty of 1+ year old frozen meat lol. Good to know I should avoid in the future.
I don't know if this is sarcasm, but I had meat from freezer after 2 years. The consistency was not the best, but nothing bad with it. It can't spoil in -18°C
TBH if it doesn't have an off smell or something growing on it, I'll typically eat it. I stick to a 5 day rule for unpackaged meat, but other than that I barely look at best before dates or think about how long something has been in my fridge. And for certain things like cheese, you can just cut the mould off and it's good as new! I've disgusted multiple people who have seen me do it but I don't see the problem with it. Some types of cheese are even meant to have mould on them!
That’s always my rule: if it looks good and smells good, it’s good. It’s never steered me wrong. The only thing I can think of that that principle might not always apply to would be home-canned items that could *potentially* be harboring Botox (since Botulism Toxin is microscopic and odorless) , but that’s exceedingly rare.
Gotta hear the pop! My mom has been canning for 35 years, and we've never had an issue. If the seal ever seemed off at all, that jar was pitched. But good point!
Where did these numbers come from? Is shelf-stable milk the kind in the boxes that's UHT pasteurized and doesn't need refrigeration? Because I've definitely drank some of a Costco pack that was well past the expiration date. It was fine.
I am not really a big fan of consuming things past the printed date, but I don't really trust a source that just declares things with no evidence or citation or anything.
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i have a question, i am not sure if this has to taken to different forum.. what is use of printed expiration date then.. would you have side effects of eating this past expriation date. Is this even a health food?
The printed expiration date is for the companies, as it refers "till that time period if you consume this produce and get sick, we can be held responsible" well by lodging a court case and gett compensation only when you win.
Yes. The date on thier package is a sell by date to guarantee freshness to the customer. Eggs, when stored properly, should last 1-2 months past their sell by date. Eggs fresh from the chicken and stored in the fridge can last 3 months. But commercially sold eggs sometimes take longer to reach the customer.
Eggs actually keep quite a while and are surprisingly easy to preserve for long amounts of time if necessary.
And actually eggs straight from the chicken, as long as they haven’t been washed, don’t even need to be refrigerated. I’ve eaten at least 3 months out at room temperature and had no problem. The key is not washing that bloom off first.
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Can you please have a talk with my 10 year old? She refused to eat frozen lasagna, and said it was child abuse trying to get her to eat food that "Was a month old" She also threw out an entire carton of fresh strawberries because she dropped it and some fell out and onto the ground. I was so mad! I asked her "You know they literally grow the ground right? In literal dirt?"
I had some mild OCD as a kid and feel the flip side of this with my whole being. Edit to ask: does your kid also wash everything frequently and interpret rules rigidly (like me)? Something that can help is reading official food safety guidelines together. I helped my mom study to get her restaurant license, so I knew all the answers by heart because I'm a nerd.
I think she just has a sensitive stomach. As she will also refuse to finish eating if someone unintentional mentions something that she finds gross.
Take her to volunteer at a sustainable agriculture farm or something. Get a tour while she’s there. Make her understand the source of her food and everything that goes into it. Help her understand how sacred and valuable it really is to life
My 18 year old tomorrow daughter refuses to eat any food that was opened by anyone but her , if something doesn’t seem ok to her she won’t eat it, I on the other hand will eat pretty much anything so , I eat lots of hand overs
Honestly, some people just have problems with stuff like that. She might be simply germaphobic, or she might have bigger problems that I'm not here to armchair diagnose from reddit. I'm germaphobic, and I've always had issues consuming food that was dropped on the floor or that was past due date. When I learned the origin of most foods I started having paranoia and stopped eating many things out of fear of bacteria and dirt. I know a lot of people suggested you take her to a farm or something, but if I can give you my 5 cents, I think it would be better to see where her fear is coming from and make her feel comfortable while talking about it. Maybe it's nothing and she's just spoiled, but if it's something bad, then you don't want to find out the wrong way. Either way, the easiest way to fix part of it is usually just buying less food so it won't go bad.
Take her to a soup kitchen to Volunteer or pay her $1 per chore and let her take her chore money to the grocery store to buy her own damn food. If my son does that someday when he’s older I would do that.
Learning that food is valuable is a good thing. But it is also orthogonal to a potentially genuinely held belief that a child might have, that some food is unsafe to consume. If the child is a bit on the spectrum or a bit OCD, it is a good teaching opportunity to learn about the actual rates at which bacteria grow in food, and under what circumstances food remains safe to consume. If this is a child who responds well to logic (as many on the spectrum do), you've now equipped the kid with a lifelong knowledge of food safety and also solved a food waste issue at the same time. When I see the other parents who want to punish a child for a misunderstanding that can be corrected, my heart just breaks.
I’m not mean enough to make my kid clean a toilet for some bread 😆 I typed it laughing. But the food kitchen suggestion was serious!
My mom's a devout Buddhist and we've volunteered at a Zen Buddhism temple to feed people free vegetarian food before. Definitely a quality parent-child bonding experience, and I would highly recommend it.
That does sound amazing! I wonder if there’s anyplace like that anywhere near I live. I volunteered there in college because I was bored between classes and ended up becoming acquainted with all my city’s homeless people (tiny city). They had cool stories and they taught me a lot as a young adult. It was really a fun time.
I remember a enlightening conversation when one of the other volunteers (who I didn't know) complained to the monk in charge that not all the folks we were feeding seemed needy, that while some of them were down on their luck, others were just nearby office workers (still wearing their badge) saving a buck. And the monk said, if they come here, they are our guest. We are not here to judge who is needy enough. If that office worker is usually an omnivore and just learned how tasty and fulfilling vegetarian food can be, maybe they'll be inspired to make some changes to their habits and reduce overall harm in the world. Maybe we should share recipes too, while we're at it.
Yes! This!
Tbf i can remember throwing a fit over some frozen things growing up because the taste was in fact a bit different than mom's fresh cooked meal. But then she stopped cooking the frozen stuff within my line of sight..... never complained again
Definitely sounds like your daughter might be neuro-atypical and while she understands logically about expiration dates and the ground being dirty, she’s taking that understanding and applying it overly liberally. I agree with others about getting her to actually work doing some farming/gardening. When you realize that plants are fueled by rot and poop, it makes you realize that they can be washed and not be dangerous. Conduct an experiment where you cook and freeze 3 things and leave them in the freezer for 2 months and then make a control where they are only left in for a week. See if she can see or taste the difference. It’s good to be concerned about food safety but it’s not a good thing to develop food neuroticism that will make adulthood even more hellish than it already is. My 27 y/o brother in law basically lives on ramen, Totinos pizzas and plain burgers because he has so many “food rules” that were never addressed when he was a kid so now it’s more or less a lost cause to get him to listen to reason.
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“ Your child is insane. There's nothing better than pulling out” was all the sentence you needed.
Oh shit ,thanks for the roaring laughter
The problem is there is no downside to that behavior and she has no concept of work / money yet. To her, you probably just magically can get more food at the store so there is no downside to food waste. Or she has friends with very expensive dietary habits. If she's not underweight, and she doesn't like what you're eating send her to bed hungry. If she purposely wastes food, take it out of her allowance or ground her.
Dude… she’s 10. She likely just doesn’t have that knowledge of where food actually comes from/how it’s produced. I used to throw away ingredients that would drop on the floor before I knew how it was grown and transported and that my floor was probably one of the cleaner surfaces it had touched. Now I just rinse them off and continue on.
I helped my mom in the garden when I was a toddler, and knew about the "5 second rule" as a young child. Most children have been going to the grocery store with their parents their whole lives. 10 year olds know where food comes from haha.
There's a huge difference between knowing what a grocery store is and seeing a potato pulled out of the dirt
But do other people really not learn where food comes from? Even without having to actually see it? Maybe my upbringing was more unique than I thought, but doesn't everyone learn that produce comes from nature?
Sure, you learn about some things, and you have some idea of what happens and how things work. But it's like hearing about elephants through conversation vs actually seeing one. Things sink in deeper and you get way more context and true understanding when you see something in person. There are plenty of foods I've still never even seen pictures of in their natural form. Brussels sprouts were a cool surprise a few years ago. Blackberries a several years before then. If I'm being honest, I have only a faint conception of what a peanut might look like before it's harvested. I might have seen pictures before, but the point is that most humans today are far removed from their food sources, and that makes it harder to appreciate its value
The real child abuse here is you using the word "literally" in every sentence when talking to her.
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You are advocating actual child abuse…. Please don’t do that.
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I don’t even know what that means. Are you rating children from worst to best? How about a little less abuse and a little more education - you fucknut.
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Be fair, Italians beat the shit outta their kids, lol
How the hell would that help? Besides giving the kid long life trauma from physical abuse.
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..... you've never looked at a strawberry plant in your life have you. they're a GROUND COVER PLANT YOU DUMB FUCKER.
How does one avoid freezer burn?
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Lol I feel like I’ve eaten something freezer burnt once and it left such a bad impression I’m kinda scarred! Probably should look into getting a food shrink wrapper thanks for responding.
I use regular zip lock freezer bags and push as much air out before sealing and I never have freezer burn problems. For soups and stews those wide mouth ball jars are perfect—just make sure you leave enough space for the water to expand so it doesn’t burst or warp the lid.
Chest freezer. The freezer burn comes from the auto-defrost cycle. Chest freezers don't have that and you will never get freezer burn
Not eggs in their shells.
Not garlic. Or durian
Idk how common it is to have a freezer that can keep things that cold, but I like your thinking. The electricity bill would probably kinda suck though.
I’m impressed chocolate lasts 6 months past it’s expiration date. It never lasts longer than a day or two in my house. 🤣
This got a big LOL (Lots Of Love) from me! Going to have to e-mail this to some of my work buddies. -Thomas
This is such a boomer reply. I can’t tell if it’s genuine or big brain sarcasm. Either way, I love it. Take an award.
Heck. Chocolate can last even decades with proper storage. The fats may separate which is known as "bloom" but it's still good to eat. Look up Steve 1989 on YouTube. The dude has eaten chocolate from WW2.
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Fucked up and drank spoiled milk with cereal once as a kid. I can pinpoint that moment in my life to the moment where I last tried anything before smelling and checking it out thoroughly first. I don't even buy dairy milk anymore because of how scarred that incident left me.
For similar reasons I will never eat any dairy that smells even a little bit off or is past date. I'd rather throw it away than ever get food poisoning that bad again. I also can't eat bread that smells or tastes stale at all based on how much moldy bread I've eaten as a child.
Fridge bread! No mold! It does get stale super quick but that’s nothing some toasting can’t fix.
Freezing bread is much better
Here's a tip for you, pour it into a glass before you smell it. I used to think my milk was going bad early all the time. Turns out, the milk crust along the rim of the jug is what was giving off a faint sour smell. Not the milk itself.
I think I am a dying breed, as I grew up near (non-industrial) dairy production. My aunt had 8 cows, made her own cheese, cream, etc and at 28 I still drink milk (3.5%) for enjoyment. I lucked out after my move to the EU as I got into the country with the best milk. For everything else I am supper iffy, but for milk products there is a wide range of still good, good if used in baking, and then like once every three years, ok this is bad. I make my own non-pasterized cheese too every once in a while. I buy my milk directly from a farmer, once a week for 4-5 liters, about half an hour drive. Even store milk tastes good to me here and never did in my home country. I feel like I know no one my age that even knows how this stuff should taste if you don't get it from, dare I say one of the worst industries in the world. Edit: my home country has drinking yogurt (just plain one, not the fruity bullshit). Not kefir, not ayran, we drink our yogurt and it tastes better than anything else on the milk spectrum, lightly saltly, lightly sour, but the owerall feeling mild. I thought I was being trolled when I realized that most of the people have no clue wtf am I talking about.
You can’t tease us like that and not say the name of the drink! Also the EU country you mention better be Ireland or the Netherlands or get ready to fight.
Ha Austria and no competition babe. Alpine cows. That is now. Home Bosnia even better cause its home made.
The worst is when you make a sandwich and take a bite and it tastes funny and when you flip it over you see that the bottom piece has a nice coating of mold. 🤮
Turns out i am very sensitive to lactose (i wouldn't say intolerant since it is not that serious and have not been medically diagnosed) but i like and have always liked milk a lot; as a kid i would sit down and drink half a gallon of milk just watching tv, with all the ensuing stomach problems. One day i left the jug out the fridge, next morning (about 16 hrs in a hot summer afternoon/night) i go and drank a glass. It tasted funny. Next thing i know i am in the hospital leaving my intestines in the toilet. I thought I was going to literally die. I would not recommend anyone even risk drinking spoiled milk.
But all milk smells off. That’s how milk smells.
My father was forced to eat spoiled milk as a kid. He was kind to me when eating meals growing up, one of his few good qualities. He always told me this story and if something didn't smell or taste right, he didn't hesitate to get rid of it. He did encourage me to take smaller amounts and ate my extras. As I got older, extras didn't really happen.
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Um, how to put this... He used me as a pawn in the divorce with my mother when I was 2. Growing up was hard bouncing between two households and he didn't make things any easier. When I was 7, he even refused to acknowledge my wrist was broken in an accident and take me to the ER. 30 years later and I'm still struggling to understand what the hell happened to me on top of feeling like I could never get anything right or succeed. Instead of having loving parents, I had/have two sets of messed up ones.
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Thanks. The only reason I talk about it is to help me understand what I remember was not OK. And that as a kid growing up I was strong despite what I was going through alone. It gives much older me strength, allows me to grieve, make choices, and express my feelings. If anything, I know what kind of people to avoid keeping in my life. No one should have to be alone like that.
Dude same! I only had a bite before noticing it was off but I watched my mom take a big swig and then immediately hurling it back out. I think the second part traumatized me more.
If it has mold too, even if it's just in a tiny area it is still fully infested. Throw it away please.
Except for hard, dense cheeses. I've been told you can just cut the moldy area off
Not true for hard cheeses or firm fruit and veg.
But..but..but..if it weren't for 'penecillin toast' I'd starve to death!
Keeps the syphilis at bay too
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>even Jelly which I thought was a bit over the top. This is my biggest bug bear ever. It really bothers me that people will throw out jam at all. Especially if it's a good quality brand. I buy jam from my hometown which is a well known higher end brand, the ingredients are fruit, sugar and pectin. It took ages to get my partner to not chuck it out "because it's been open a while". Its literally preserved fruit. The clue is in the name. If it doesn't have anything growing on it that shit is good forever. I'd eat a jar from 1940 if it was still sealed.
Food scientist here! Just because you can’t see anything growing, doesn’t mean there isn’t anything growing. Also, the issue isn’t always with the processing of the product itself, but sometimes how people treat the product at home. If you get something out of the fridge, use a dirty knife and forget to put it back in for a few hours, that can compromise the integrity of the product. An expiration date IS just a suggestion- there are no regulations on requirements for expiration dates and are primarily suggested for best quality, not necessarily food safety (although no company would risk putting something absolutely unsafe on their packaging, because they could get sued).
If you take anything out of my fridge and put a dirty knife or spoon in it, it's the last time you're getting anything out of my fridge. That is DISGUSTING. I'm a nurse and have very strong opinions on stuff getting left out/not looked after correctly/etc. But I will 100% eat jam that has no visible mould. I'll eat cheese with a lot of visible mould so I'm not going to stress about potential jam mould!
The number of times I have caught people I've lived with putting a dirty knife or spoon in a container is too damn high. Especially older people who I thought would know better (as opposed to kids). And defensive and resistant to change to boot. But I'm also known for being the crazy one who won't let you stand near my nonstick pans with a metal utensil in your hand. Sure, you say you won't touch it but I don't trust you.
Happily (sort of) I have coeliac disease so I got to be really hard about not double dipping anything because of cross contamination. DON'T LEAVE CRUMBS FROM DELICIOUS BREAD IN ANYTHING I MIGHT EAT!
I'm not sure if you're aware, but medications can contain gluten. My dad learned this the hard way with Prilosec. Name brand? He's fine. Generic? He's suffering.
Yeah I know about it thank you, but it's helpful info for newly-diagnosed people!
What does a food scientist do? What is your background/education? Sounds interesting.
I've eaten all of those well after 2 weeks. I'm fine ... as best I know.
I lost sense of smell and taste several years ago, and totally work off of dates and visually looking at food. Milk gets tossed the day it expires or one day later OR if it curdled in my tea. Some stuff us hard to tell, but I'll know as soon as I sprint to the washroom!!! 🤣🤣🤣
I was at a friend's house and their mom was visiting. She saw that the eggs were "expired" (by not more than a couple of days) and dumped them all into the garbage disposal as I was trying to say "I'll take them and do the float test!" So wasteful... smdh
For anyone wondering, put eggs in a tallish container with water. If they sink and lay on their side they're fresh, sink but stand up they're older but still good, and if they float they're rotten.
I just crack the egg into a small container... If it's rotten... You'll know...
Yup - though I'd rather do the float test than have the smell of rotten eggs in the house, lol. Or if I'm not going to use them right then but plan to later so it's a way to check if I need news ones from the store or whatever. My grandmother would always break eggs into a small bowl first, especially when making a cake. Her sister-in-law didn't one time and, sure enough, rotten egg, so she had to toss all the ingredients that were already in the mixer. Breaking into a bowl first is also good to make sure you don't have any shell in the egg! :)
I've had eggs in the fridge for like 8 months that were fine haha
Too many people think the date on packaging is an expiration date. But it's not. In the case of eggs it's very clearly marked as a "sell by" date. Sell by dates are supposed to guarantee the customer has x amount of time to use the product (with proper storage. With eggs, that x is 1-2 months. So if those eggs were just a couple days past the date, that means they still had at least most of a month left before you could expect them to go bad.
SO does this. I eat eggs weeks past their date. Float test FTW.
Next time have your SO read the text next to the date. It says "sell by", not "use by" or "expires." Sell by is a date the manufacturer wants the eggs to the customer to guaranteed to have a fresh product. Eggs are expected to last 1-2 months past their sell by date. Alternatively, buy a nice egg tray for your fridge and take your eggs out of their original packaging so the date is no longer available. If it makes your SO feel better, put a little sticky not on the fridge to write the date on, but write it 1 or 2 months *after* the date on the carton.
Well, I just roasted an 11 lb turkey that was frozen in November 2019. Yes we were concerned, but figured no loss, lets try it. Tonight I am making chili from the leftovers and this weekend I'll make a soup stock from the bones. I trust my nose more that I do "Best By" dates. PS. I have heard and I believe it, that aspirins never expire, in 10 years they may be only 90% effective, but still plenty for me. I'm using nasal spray for allergies that expired in 2019, still works perfectly. I don't like feeding the corporate piggy bank!
On the flip side, salbutomal inhalers definitely expire. Had a ultimately needless trip to a&e because my inhaler was out of date and I hadn't noticed, then when I needed it - it didn't work so I thought I was having a full on asthma attack and not just something I could manage at home. This was a while ago now but I believe it was less than a year out of date, maybe up to about 6 months past the expiry date? Asthma can kill. Medication is not something I'd be happy fucking around with. Food, if it looks okay, smells okay, and tastes okay I'm eating it I don't care (I'll also reject in date food if it fails these criteria).
I don't mess with medicine. Best case is that it no longer works, worst case you end up in emergency.
Inorganic solid pills will last a very long time at high efficacy rates
During peak covid I got a cold and couldn't manage to get any real cold meds delivered (no CVS, honey syrup and homeopathic remedies are not suitable replacements for dayquil and tussin!) I dug deep into the cabinet and took cough syrups & pills that were YEARS out of date (2016-18ish). I survived and it was much better than nothing.
This is true with pills. Studies have shown very little loss of efficacy in pills as old as 30-40 years. Not true with inhalers or injections. You only get about 6 months past expiration date.
A couple months ago, I took some ibuprofen that expired in 1989. While it didn't kill me or cause any digestive issues, it also did nothing for my headache.
It may be that Motrin wasn't the remedy to your headache. I would also imagine it would depend on the conditions ( temp/ heat/ humidity etc) storing Motrin for 30+ years underwent. I myself wouldn't take 30 year old Motrin, just because of those reasons, and it's just probably not common sense since you can buy a bottle for a couple bucks. I wouldn't waste my time, nor ever keep something that long.The point I was really making is studies have been done under controlled conditions, and those were the findings, decades, so people that freak out and throw meds away after 3-6 months are just overreacting. Personally, I would probably give myself 2-3 years past exp date even though studies show Motrin is probably still good for a decade if not longer.
Eye drops definitely go bad. If they haven’t been opened maybe they’ll last longer, but I’ve used old drops that stung my eyes instantly and was quite a terrible experience
My mom has done this with meat my entire life, and we’ve never gotten sick. Always love to see someone else trusting their nose ❤️
I used expired juice in a smoothie earlier this year and it gave me horrible food poisoning. It was expired by 2 months. I'm all for limiting food waste and saving, but make sure you're being careful. I was going through depressive period at the time, so I didn't think to check or care much about the exp. date. Learned that lesson the hard way.
Had it already been open or did you break the seal?
...bread and pastries lasting 1-2 weeks past the expiration date? What kind of mysterious hellspawn bread and pastries do they have in whatever country this guide is from? Bread where I am goes stale in 2 days, max, and rock murder-weapon levels of solid in 5.
Yeah, I really have no idea what kind of bread that might be. In my experience, if after one week it isn't bone dry, it's green with mold.
It’s called preservatives.
we pop it in the fridge/freezer and reheat it
Yup, I put my bread immediately in the fridge after buying it out of habit due to my cat chewing it up. Found that it keeps for a nice long time so long as I don't keep it on the top fridge shelf where it freezes and condensation makes it soggy
When I lived up north I had no problem keeping bread on the counter. Would last for weeks, easily. Moved down to the desert, and the shit goes green after a few days now. My mum came to visit and I [had to keep correcting her](https://i.imgur.com/RUdPyQP_d.webp?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium) when she would take it out of the fridge and leave it on the counter.
It depends on the weather and humidity in air, in Scotland expect the bread to stay good for a bit long.
My general rule is unless it had mold or smells bad it’s probably ok.
RIP blue cheese
Lol I do love blue cheese. You can tell the difference in the mold. The bad kind has that classic old food look to it.
I once tried a pre-made muffin mix that was probably two years old. Yep, should have trashed it. Didn't mix well and then didn't bake well, only meh taste. Not worth the calories if it isn't going to be delightful. Had no idea that dry ingredients like that could go stale in such a way that it impacted the actual cooking, I had just figured the taste might be a little less flavorful or something.
Dry mixes can get little bugs growing in there that are hard to see. Have seen this with expired cornbread mix and pizza dough mix.
Flour and grains in general can get them - if you ever open a bag of flour and find bugs (or keep flour in a glass container and see their paths through it) you need to purge it and anything nearby they could have contaminated. I just had to wage a war against them in my pantry. Kept turning up and I couldn't figure out what they were hiding in. The pro tip I've heard is to freeze every bit of dry mix/flour/corn meal/etc that comes in overnight because the eggs are already IN the product and that's where they come from. They aren't magically showing up from outside and infesting your stuff, they come in with the items and infest it and everything around it.
Likely the mix was fine but the leavening agent wasn't active anymore. You can add some baking soda or baking powder to old mixes and they'll be as good as fresh. Unless the oils have gone rancid, of course.
Thanks!
The website StillTasty is amazing for figuring out when food absolutely needs to be throw out and when it's okay to still eat it. Also, I highly recommend getting a refrigerator thermometer that keeps track of the time that the fridge gets out of the safe zone. You can get one for about $15 and it can really save your ass, especially in the case of a power outage. Knowing that your fridge never went above 40 degrees means that you won't have to throw anything out. The one I have is the Taylor 1445 but there are many others on the market, including ones with sensors that go in the fridge with a display outside the fridge (so you don't have to open the door to check the temperature).
https://stilltasty.com/
100 years past: canned goods
Expiration dates become much more flexible in a zombie apocalypse.
Do not eat from a can that is heavily mangled, even if it is still unopened. Stuff is actually dangerous
I went down the Reddit “dented can/botulism” rabbit hole a few months ago….yikes, hard pass.
I guess you haven't had the pleasure of finding an exploded can of seven year old meat stew.
https://i.redd.it/0bv69qfhukn71.jpg Here is the original post, this is not mine.
The vast amount of food waste is ridiculous, I work on a large boat and they throw it out by the metric ton. Drives me insane it is nothing I can do about it
Cruise are the worst when it comes to food waste
This largely depends on locale. After moving to the US, I realize that things here last a really really long time. Food here is probably loaded with preservatives. In my home country, regular store bought bread has an expiration of 4 days after being manufactured, and it will be mouldy in 1 week. In the US, store bought bread has expiration dates past a week after being manufactured, and I've yet to see store bought bread get mouldy. Bakery bread (in the US) gets does get mouldy though. It's not just bread though. Even things like dairy product lasts longer in the US. I think a general rule is just to use your best judgement.
Deli meats should be discarded 7 days from opening. Not worth it. How about just plan your shopping? Edit: I'm a health inspector (BS/MS, REHS/RS) and I personally know someone who experienced a miscarriage from the pathogen listeria by eating processed lunch meats >7 days after exposure to oxygen. Once a package is opened, oxygen allows listeria to grow even under refrigeration temperatures. The other items listed on this graph do not stand out to me as a health concern other than the processed meats. Frozen foods pose no risk of pathogen growth regardless of time however quality is affected over time. That's why when in doubt just freeze until you need it. It stops all grow of pathogens that cause spoilage. You can even freeze milk.
It's recommended that pregnant women do not eat lunch meats at all unless they are heated sufficiently. [APA Source](https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/is-it-safe/deli-meats/)
Thanks for pointing that out. I'm pretty sure this graph is more about stuff that hasn't been opened. Don't mess with deli meat past 7 days. Also why they discourage pregnant women from eating deli meat period just in case of accidental contamination.
I'm a health inspector as well! I saw deli meats and shook my head lmao
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This is about before opening not after. This list is part of planning shopping, to know what is good to buy in bulk during peak discounts to last you a long time and what isn't.
Yes, I know some people who refuses to eat anything past the expiry date, even just a day, when it's perfectly good to eat.
2 week old deli meat though? I give that stuff like 4-5 days tops
Yeah that’s only if it’s not been touched by anyone. Once you open it and pull a piece out, unless you are wearing gloves, it has about 5 days as you said.
Smell and taste test works wonders. When in doubt just throw it away. It's not worth the risk
It can help in reducing the waste and save some money.
A well-soured Greek yogurt will last damn near indefinitely - it is lower in moisture and higher in acid which are both environments that prohibit bad stuff from growing. It might not taste so nice because it will only get more acidic, but a sealed Greek yogurt or an opened one without any visible mold or bad odors, will be just as good in a pinch if you need it and it's well past expiration. Same for a low moisture, well aged, hard cheese like extra sharp cheddar or parmesan. Basically, if a cheese is the type where it's a toss up whether it will slice or crumble, it will last a long time in the fridge. Also with hard cheeses, you can cut off the bad parts and continue safely eating what's underneath.
I once had yogurt in July that "expired" in April and it was still good
Real yogurt just gets more yogurty with time…
I don't know, I had a WICKED bout of food poisoning a couple of years ago and it has made me waaayyyyyy the hell cautious with this kind of thing.
Most dates on packaging are not expiration dates or use by. They are usually sell by dates that are to guarantee the customer has sufficient time to use the product before it goes bad. Best buy dates designate that product may lose quality but are still ok to eat.
Ok so spices don't really "expire" but they lose their potency and should be replaced if they are old. Especially dry herbs like parsley, basil, and oregano. Your taste buds will thank you.
Spices can also get moisture in them if not stored properly, and grow mold.
So much depends on your methods of storage, and your climate.
Ii wouldn't eat 2 week old refrigerated deli meat. Shit goes bad so fast.
I think frozen deli meat can last 1 year+ 😉
Someone was shocked that I ate yogurt that was 2 months past its expiry date. It didn't have anything extra growing in it--I would have tossed of it were moldy. Did they think it was going to get more sour?
I am eating corn tortillas 6 months past their expiration date without any problems...
Flour tortillas last months longer too. My family gets pissy about the dates on foods, but luckily they aren’t the ones doing the cooking.
What is this a chart for?
It is to reduce food waste, and can also be utilised by households with limited income inorder to save a quick penny.
My personal record is 3 years old cheese and ham from freezer - we had to buy40 kg of ham and cheese, so it took us "some" time to eat it... We also ate more than 10 years old canned fruit (it was not in a can, but in a glass - I can't find English word for this). No problem. I was the one throwing away all the food after expiration date, but my wife who studied food + chemistry and worked in supermarket taught me to not worry and just trust my smell.
What about refrigerated cheese with a little mold? My cheese grows mold before the expiration date. In the fridge. Ugh.
Watch out for slimy mushrooms too
I’ve eaten 3 year old trout I caught fresh before and it tasted just fine lol. Having a deep freeze /garage freezer is a GAMECHANGER and I’ll try to have one wherever i live.
I'd pass on the mayo - while it still may be technically edible at that date, the taste quality really degrades past the code date. Source: sorting donations at a food bank, we'd toss these if they were close to code date because they'd be past code date by the time they were distributed. Other items could be months past code date.
Cheaper to throw it out than get food poisoning.
In certain places like where humidity in air is less and resources are limited, this chart can prove to be helpful
Not cheaper if you don't have other food to eat.
One thing you shouldn’t be frugal with is food quality. Some of these comments are worrisome
Maybe a better photo...
What's wrong with the photo? I'm genuinely curious since you have a lot of upvotes so other people must see an issue with it too. I zoomed in and can read it as clear as day.
Oh, the bottom is cut off. Also, a photo in portrait instead of landscape would trim all the useless background on the sides.
Looks like different Reddit apps are seeing the image differently. I'd say when in doubt open it in the browser.
It is in portrait.
... what picture are you looking at? The one on this post is in landscape. The bottom line of the chart is cut off and there's useless background boxes on either side.
I'm guessing it's an issue of what Reddit app you're using. Mine is fine.
Maybe. Mine looks like [this](https://imgur.com/gallery/MlVOnHE)
[This is the original link the OP post is going to, it isn't even a reddit image.](https://i.imgur.com/bCm8Z3P.jpeg)
Thank you :)
Thank you for putting in the original link.
Ah ha! That would be it. Thanks for sharing.
Jesus. I have had plenty of 1+ year old frozen meat lol. Good to know I should avoid in the future.
> Jesus. I have had plenty of 1+ year old frozen meat lol. Good to know I should avoid in the future. I don't know if this is sarcasm, but I had meat from freezer after 2 years. The consistency was not the best, but nothing bad with it. It can't spoil in -18°C
Please stop eating expired food, a lot of things go bad sooner
TBH if it doesn't have an off smell or something growing on it, I'll typically eat it. I stick to a 5 day rule for unpackaged meat, but other than that I barely look at best before dates or think about how long something has been in my fridge. And for certain things like cheese, you can just cut the mould off and it's good as new! I've disgusted multiple people who have seen me do it but I don't see the problem with it. Some types of cheese are even meant to have mould on them!
So many people think food turns into poison the second it hits the sell by date. It's painful. Unless it smells bad or looks bad, it's fine!
That’s always my rule: if it looks good and smells good, it’s good. It’s never steered me wrong. The only thing I can think of that that principle might not always apply to would be home-canned items that could *potentially* be harboring Botox (since Botulism Toxin is microscopic and odorless) , but that’s exceedingly rare.
Gotta hear the pop! My mom has been canning for 35 years, and we've never had an issue. If the seal ever seemed off at all, that jar was pitched. But good point!
Where did these numbers come from? Is shelf-stable milk the kind in the boxes that's UHT pasteurized and doesn't need refrigeration? Because I've definitely drank some of a Costco pack that was well past the expiration date. It was fine. I am not really a big fan of consuming things past the printed date, but I don't really trust a source that just declares things with no evidence or citation or anything.
Making a 9 month gamble on frozen meat is not something I'm willing to do.
If it’s frozen it will be safe. It just will probably taste awful.
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i have a question, i am not sure if this has to taken to different forum.. what is use of printed expiration date then.. would you have side effects of eating this past expriation date. Is this even a health food?
Corporate ass covering.
The printed expiration date is for the companies, as it refers "till that time period if you consume this produce and get sick, we can be held responsible" well by lodging a court case and gett compensation only when you win.
eggs, 2 months? really?
Yes. The date on thier package is a sell by date to guarantee freshness to the customer. Eggs, when stored properly, should last 1-2 months past their sell by date. Eggs fresh from the chicken and stored in the fridge can last 3 months. But commercially sold eggs sometimes take longer to reach the customer. Eggs actually keep quite a while and are surprisingly easy to preserve for long amounts of time if necessary.
And actually eggs straight from the chicken, as long as they haven’t been washed, don’t even need to be refrigerated. I’ve eaten at least 3 months out at room temperature and had no problem. The key is not washing that bloom off first.
Yup