Storage times by melissafreedomfighter

Throughout history mankind’s overriding issues with food have been finding enough and keeping excess so that it is safe to eat later. Once you have determined to stock up on staples, it will be important to maintain your supply so that you will constantly have an ample amount of food on hand that is nourishing and safe to eat.

Except for rare cases, feed your family out of your stock, using older food first, and replacing it with fresh. This way you will cultivate the habit of eating what you have on hand, and your food will always be at its peak of freshness.


PREPACKAGED FOODS

Things bought off the shelf in the grocery store will have a date stamped somewhere on the package. Short-life items such as milk will have a “Sell By” date. If kept cold, the milk is good for a week after that date. Canned goods, packages of pasta, and things such as those will have a “Use By” date. This date is the latest that the company will guarantee that the product is at its peak of nutrition. If the package is kept sealed, the food is still edible for several years after the “Use By” date, but it nutritional value may be diminished. Anything that has been around for long should be examined carefully before eating. If it looks or smells questionable, discard it.

Things will keep better in a cool, dry place. Store, if possible, in airtight, moisture-proof containers.

In general…

Baking powder…………………1 year
Baking soda…………………… 1 year
Beans and lentils, dried………...1 year
Cake mix……………………….1 year
Catsup…………………………..1 year
Crackers and cereal…………….1 year
Eggs…………………………….4 months if the shells are intact
Flour……………………………1 year
Gelatin………………………….6 months
Honey…………………………..1 year before it crystallizes – it will stay good much longer
Jams and jellies…………………6 months
Mayonnaise……………………..Indefinitely if unopened
Molasses………………………..1 year
Pancake mix…………………….6 months
Pasta…………………………….2 years
Peanut butter……………………2 years
Powdered milk………………….6 months
Rice, brown……………………..1 year
Rice, flavored mixes…………….6 months
Rice, white………………………2 years
Salad dressing…………………. 6 months
Shortening……………………..8 months
Soup and sauce mixes………….1 year
Sugar, brown……………………Indefinitely (Protect from moisture.)
Sugar, powdered………………..2 years (Protect from moisture.)
Sugar, white granulated……….. Indefinitely (Protect from moisture.)
Syrup……………………………1 year
Tea bags…………………………6 months
Tea, instant………………………1 year



FROZEN FOODS

In the event of a total collapse, it is a good bet that the electricity will be out. If the power is still on, though, here is what you can expect from your freezer.

Note: Your best bet is a chest freezer. Air is a fluid, and as with any fluid it will seek its lowest level. Cold air, being heavier, will flow out of an upright freezer, replaced with warmer air that needs to be cooled after the freezer is shut. With a chest freezer the air stays put, much like the water in a kettle. Even if the power fails a chest freezer will keep things frozen – and safe to eat – for a much longer time.

Meat and fish should be frozen within one to two days after purchase. Fresh vegetables should be blanched to stop the ripening process before freezing. Everything should be kept wrapped and sealed to prevent freezer burn.

Frozen at 0 degrees Fahrenheit…

Bread……………………………6 months to 1 year
Butter…………………………...6 to 9 months
Cakes……………………………4 to 6 months
Cheese…………………………..6 months
Cookies…………………………4 to 6 months
Eggs (raw, out of shell)…………1 year
Fruits……………………………1 year
Milk……………………………..3 months
Pies, fruit………………………..1 year
Tofu……………………………..5 months
Vegetables………………………8 months to 1 year

MEAT:
Bacon…………………………...3 months
Beef…………………………….8 months to 1 year
Fish, fresh water, fatty………….3 months
Fish, fresh water, lean…………..6 months
Fish, seafood……………………2 to 6 months
Lamb……………………………1 year
Pork…………………………….6 to 8 months
Poultry………………………….6 months to 1 year
Sausage…………………………4 months

CANNING

Canning is perhaps the method of preserving food, after freezing, that most people are familiar with. After the initial investment for equipment (kettles, racks, mason jars, rings, and lids) the only things that will need to be replaced each time are the lids. I have been canning produce from our garden for awhile, and it is always quite satisfying to see rows of canning jars sitting on the table, cooling.

Also, for most canning jobs you will need a pressure cooker. Merely a bath in boiling water will not kill the bacteria that cause botulism. Tomatoes have a high acidity and mere boiling is adequate, although many of our sources advise a pressure cooker for tomatoes, too.

Most department stores, hardware stores, and farmers’ supply stores carry canning supplies, so getting started is quite simple. As with most other foods, store canned goods in a cool (below 50 degrees), dry, and dark place.

Virtually all canned foods will keep reliably for up to 2 years, but we have found that tomato sauce has lasted much longer.

DRYING

Drying is probably the oldest form of food preservation. It can be as simple as spreading out onions on a window screen supported between a couple of sawhorses, or as elaborate as getting a high-tech, thermostatically-controlled electric dryer. As I pointed out elsewhere, there are plans available for solar food dryers.

Once your food has been prepared and dried, pack it into clean, airtight containers and (of course) store it in a cool, dry, and dark place.


General shelf life for dried foods:


Food…………..at 70 degrees Fahrenheit ………. at 50 degrees Fahrenheit

Apples…………………6 months………………………. 2 years
Apricots………………. 8 months………………………. 2 ½ years
Asparagus……………..2 months………………………..6 months
Bananas………………..4 months………………………. 1 ½ years
Beans, green…………...4 months……………………….1 year
Beans, lima…………….4 months……………………….1 year
Beets…………………...4 months……………………….1 year
Blueberries…………….6 months………………………. 2 years
Broccoli………………..1 month………………………..3 months
Carrots…………………6 months………………………. 1 ½ years
Cherries………………..1 year………………………….. 4 years
Citrus fruit peel………..6 months………………………..2 years
Corn……………………4 months………………………..1 year
Cucumbers…………….2 months………………………. 6 months
Dates…………………....1 year………………………….. 4 years
Figs…………………….....6 months………………………. 2 years
Garlic…………………....4 months……………………….1 year
Grapes…………………6 months………………………. 2 years
Horseradish……………4 months………………………. 1 year
Mushrooms……………2 months………………………..6 months
Nectarines……………..6 months………………………. 2 years
Onions…………………4 months………………………. 1 year
Papaya…………………6 months………………………. 2 years
Parsnips………………..4 months………………………. 1 year
Peaches ………………...6 months……………………….2 years
Pears……………………6 months……………………… 2 years
Peas……………………4 months……………………….1 year
Peppers, hot……………8 months………………………. 2 years
Peppers, green…………8 months……………………….2 years
Pineapple………………8 months………………………. 2 ½ years
Plums…………………..8 months……………………….2 ½ years
Potatoes, white…………4 months……………………….1 year
Potatoes, sweet…………1 month………………………..3 months
Pumpkin………………..1 month………………………..3 months
Squash, Summer……….1 month………………………...3 months
Strawberries……………6 months……………………….2 years
Tomatoes……………….3 months……………………….9 months
Turnips ………………….2 months……………………….6 months

Dried meat or fish will keep 2 to 3 months on the shelf, at the most.

Dried herbs and spices will keep for a year whole, or 6 months ground.



PICKLING

Pickling is another form of food preservation that has been around for a long time. It is said that the ancient Chinese were the first. Just about any fruit of vegetable can be pickled. When one mentions pickling, people’s first thoughts usually immediately go to dill or sweet pickles made from cucumbers, but there are actually four different types of pickling. First is brine, which includes “pickles, ” sauerkraut, green tomatoes, and things such as these. Next is fresh-pack. Rather than soaking in a brine for weeks, the vegetables are soaked overnight then packed in vinegar and seasonings. Fruit pickles include whole fruits, things such as peaches or pears. They are simmered in a “brine” of sweet and sour syrup. Relishes can be made from either fruit or vegetables, to give either a sweet or spicy relish.

Virtually any fruit or vegetable can be pickled. Recipes abound for hundreds of different types. After the initial process, can or freeze. The pickled produce will last on the shelf for about a year.


ROOT CELLARS

In the previous appendix I discussed makeshift root cellars. In a root cellar unprocessed fruits and vegetables – especially root crops – can be stored for months. In contrast to most other places for food storage, where things need to be kept cool, dry, and dark, root cellars need to be kept cold – just above freezing – and humid, about 80% to 90%. Root crops are still “alive” when stored unprocessed, and in warm and light conditions will continue to grow, feeding upon their own reserves to produce foliage. Have you ever had potatoes sprout (and shrivel) before you had a chance to use them?

Here are the general storage lives in a root cellar:

Apples…………………………..4 to 6 months
Beets……………………………3 to 5 months
Broccoli…………………………1 to 2 weeks
Brussel sprouts…………………2 weeks to 1 month
Cabbage…………………………1 to 4 months
Carrots………………………….6 months
Cauliflower……………………. 2 weeks to 1 month
Cucumbers……………………. 2 to 3 weeks
Eggplant………………………..1 to 2 weeks
Garlic…………………………..3 to 4 months
Leeks………………………….. 1 to 3 months
Onions………………………….4 to 6 months
Potatoes, white………………….4 to 6 months
Potatoes, sweet…………………4 to 6 months
Pumpkins……………………….4 to 6 months
Radishes………………………..2 to 4 months
Squash, Winter…………………4 to 6 months
Tomatoes, green………………..1 to 1 ½ months
Turnips………………………….2 to 4 months