With grocery prices still climbing, Americans are paying closer attention to keeping fresh food in the fridge and discarding spoiled items. Understanding product labels helps consumers determine if a product is at peak quality: “Best if used by/before”typically indicates when to consume an item for the best quality. “Sell by” tells stores when to sell a product to ensure the best quality.“Use by” is the last day you can expect the product to be at peak quality.
The clock starts ticking on fruits and vegetables once you get them home. Wilted lettuce; mushy, mildewy cucumbers and tomatoes; and strawberries with moldy beards are obvious candidates for the trash. Green veggies such as broccoli, chard, lettuce, and cucumbers last from five days to a week in the fridge. Tomatoes last for just three days (five days at room temperature.) Berries expire after five days. Even though some food may be stored in plastic bags, moisture can eventually spoil the contents.
Yogurt may be good for up to two weeks after the "Best If Used By/Before" or "Use-By" date. This label is the date manufacturers recommend using the product while it's still at its best. Even so, consumers should conduct the smell test to see if the product is odious. Yogurt can have a naturally tangy scent, but if you aren't sure toss it.
The shelf life of hard cheese depends on the type of cheese, processing method, packaging date, its exposure to heat, and how the cheese is stored. Unopened hard cheese (parmesan, romano, gouda) can last up to four months in the refrigerator; opened hard cheese has a shelf life of six weeks. Indicators of spoiled cheese are a darker color, harder texture, and stronger smell.
The shelf life of unopened soft cheese is shorter than hard cheese, usually about one or two weeks beyond a use-by date. Soft cheese shelf life depends on the type of cheese (brie, feta, ricotta), processing method and packaging date, exposure to heat, and how it is stored. Bad soft cheese has a growth of blue or green mold.
Unopened milk generally stays fresh for five to seven days past its listed date. Opened milk lasts at least two to three days beyond this date. The National Science Foundation reported that 78% of consumers say they throw out milk and other dairy products once the date on the label has passed. Pay close attention to the listed date at the store; dates on same-size milk containers can vary.
Uncooked ground meat and poultry can last up to two days in the refrigerator. Otherwise, store these items in the freezer. Cooked meat and poultry are fine in the fridge for up to four days. Storage in the refrigerator at temperatures 40 degrees or below slows the growth of bacteria.
Unopened lunch meat — turkey, salami, ham — is good for two weeks, and up to five days after it’s opened. It’s important to store cold cuts properly. The longer lunch meat is left on the counter, the faster bacteria will grow. The Food and Drug Administration recommends storing lunch meat in the refrigerator at 41 degrees or below.
Stored dry rice or pasta is good for up to two years. Once it’s cooked, don’t keep it in the refrigerator past four days.
Health experts recommend consuming butter within three months of when it is refrigerated. If it’s tightly wrapped and stored in either the refrigerator or freezer, it could last from a month to a year.
Eggs, a versatile culinary ingredient, have been headline items in recent months because of soaring prices. Egg prices leaped 15.2% in January, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the biggest monthly increase since June 2015. The back-of-the-fridge item is good for up to five weeks.
Low-acid canned goods, the must-haves for a pending apocalypse, can last for up to five years. However, this is true if the cans are kept in a pantry and away from a stove or sink. Throw cans out if they are dented, leaking, or have heavy rust.
You may think that ketchup, one of the denizens of the refrigerator door, can last for years. But health experts say it should be consumed within six months when opened and refrigerated. It can last for a year if kept in a pantry.
It’s best to eat mayonnaise within two months after a jar is opened and kept in the refrigerator. Mayonnaise is usually safe to eat for up to two months past its expiration date, if it has been stored properly in the refrigerator. It can last for up to three months on the pantry shelf.
The Department of Agriculture says most refrigerated leftovers last no more than four days. So if you still have that vat of chili from your Super Bowl party in your refrigerator, get rid of it. Dishes with uncooked ingredients such as mayonnaise spoil faster and must be eaten within several days. It’s helpful to put the date on the Tupperware container of any leftovers on a Post-it note when the item goes into the refrigerator.
Opened beer bottles and cans should be imbibed within one day when refrigerated. Unopened bottles and cans can be stored for up to nine months on a pantry shelf. Non-alcoholic beverages should be consumed within two days after opening and stored in a refrigerator. They can last for six months unopened in a pantry for six months.
These neighbors of ketchup and mayonnaise on the refrigerator door have limited shelf lives also. They should be consumed within six months of when they are opened and refrigerated, according to the Department of Agriculture. The federal agency said it’s best to eat them as soon as possible because after they are opened, jams and jellies are exposed to air, which contains mold and bacterial spores. Jams and jellies can be stored in a pantry for up to a year.
