Expired Foods Can Still Be Eaten

When Doug Rauch, the former
president of grocery chain Trader
Joe's, announced earlier this week
that he is planning on opening a
discount store that carries expired
food, the big question many
responded with was: "Is it safe?"
Americans have come to equate
products past their expiration dates
with food poisoning, a
misconception that contributes to 40
percent — or $160 billion worth —
of the nation's food supply being
trashed each year.
"Food-borne illness comes from the
contamination of food by
salmonella, listeria, and other
pathogens," agriculture and food
expert Dana Gunders, who co-
authored a recent report on food
labeling by the Natural Resources
Defense Council and the Harvard
Food Law and Policy Clinic, tells
Yahoo Shine. "They get on the food
during production and processing.
That's what leads to people being
sick, not the age of the food." Many
foods will still be OK to eat after
their "use by" date has long
expired, even meat and milk.
While most people think that food
labeling is regulated, the Federal
Food and Drug Administration
oversees only the labeling of baby
formula. Everything else is at the
discretion of the food producer or
seller.
Widespread labeling came about
during the 1970s, long after the
majority of American consumers had
transitioned from growing their own
food or purchasing food from farms
and local shops to buying from large
supermarkets. "The demand for
labels came out of a concern about
freshness. They were never meant to
be about safety," says Gunders. In
fact, expiration dates aren't a
guarantee of safety at all, since they
were designed to simply indicate
peak quality.
There are actually two types of food
labels. "Sell by" dates are meant to
tell retailers when the manufacturer
recommends that they rotate stock.
"Use by" or "best by" dates,
meanwhile, indicate freshness to the
consumer. "For most products, it's
up to the manufacturer," says
Gunders. "Some may use actual lab
tests, but that's pretty rare. They
might do consumer taste testing or
they might guess according to how
competitors are labeling."
In my own refrigerator, a sealed
glass jar of salsa reads "best by April
24, 2014." What exactly happens on
April 25? When it comes to eating
so-called expired food, Gunders and
other experts say you can indeed
consume many foods past their
expiration dates if you eyes, nose,
and a healthy serving of common
sense.
"Smell the food," food safety expert
Ted Labuza tells Yahoo Shine.
Labuza, who teaches food science
and nutrition at the University of
Minnesota says the key to ensuring a
longer shelf life is controlling the
storage temperature and preventing
exposure to moisture and oxygen.
Before you toss something out,
check out this list of just some of the
items that will last beyond their
expiration dates, if you follow a few
simple steps.
Meat. Labuza keeps his refrigerator
at between 32 and 34 degrees, lower
than the generally recommended 40
degrees. This gives meat a 50
percent longer shelf life, he says.
Labuza points out that stores don't
scientifically determine the use-by
date of fresh meat, but follow what
their competitors are doing.
Milk. Pasteurized milk also lasts 50
percent longer when stored at a
lower temperature.
Canned goods. The label generally
gives a shelf life of about three
years. If you keep cans in a cool
place (not above the stove) they will
last about seven years. Always
discard dented cans. Jarred and
bottled goods will also last longer
than their best date if kept in a cool
place.
Frozen food. "I never look at the
dates, I just eat it," says Labuza.
Freezing kills all of the microbes that
cause spoilage, although food will
develop ice crystals (freezer burn) if
there is an air space inside the
packaging.
Dry goods such as crackers and corn
chips. If they have a stale texture,
crisp them up in a toaster oven. If
they smell "barnyard-y" or rancid,
the oils have spoiled and it's best to
discard.
Eggs. Place in a bowl of water. If an
egg floats, it's gone bad, but if it
sinks, it's still edible, even if that
expiration date passed you by weeks
ago.
Pasta. Keep pasta in clear packaging
in a dark, cool place which will
increase shelf life and also retain
nutrients, including riboflavin, that
are light sensitive.
Bread. Keeping bread and other
wheat-flour based foods in the
freezer dramatically extends shelf
life.
Packaged greens. If your lettuce is
wilted but not visibly decayed, you
can revive it by soaking in ice water
for about 10 minutes.
One caveat: Prepared foods and
processed meats can pick up
pathogens while being produced.
Gunders warns that prepared foods
such as a deli sandwich or processed
meats can harbor listeria that
proliferates even when stored in the
refrigerator. Use such foods quickly
and never serve processed meats
such as hot dogs or sausages
(including those labeled pre-cooked)
raw, especially to small children, the
elderly, or anyone who has a
compromised immune system. The
good news: Cooking will kill surface
bacteria.
http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/
expired-food-just-nose-190200241

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