The most important things to keep in mind when considering food safety are understanding labels and storing foods optimally. Let’s start with food labels. The biggest myth to bust is “Best Before” dates determining a product’s lifespan.
Best Before dates are simply the company telling you when the food product will lose quality and stop tasting its best. A Best Before date has nothing to do with when the product is not safe to eat.
I am writing this while a tub of yoghurt sits in my fridge reading Best Before 16 days ago. It smells absolutely fine, tastes good with a tiny taste check, and hasn’t changed appearance.
I use smell and appearance to guide my eating habits and I often run my decision past other people in my household for a second opinion. This strategy has saved me money, stopped edible food from ending up in the compost, and kept me well.
“Use By” dates are different. Take these ones seriously. Food with Use By dates can become unsafe to eat before it’s visibly spoiled or off. It’s also illegal to sell food past its Use By date.
Moving on to storage, your fridge and freezer are key tools in your mission to save food. There is useful information on food safety at home on the Ministry for Primary Industries website.
I always reheat food incredibly well with a microwave, hob, or oven – and if I know I won’t eat them within a couple of days, I freeze them.
You can freeze most things and reheat them when you need them. You’ll find blanched spinach from my garden, sprigs of coriander, pre-cooked meals, and bags full of frozen bananas in my freezer.
Be careful when dabbling in the art of leftovers and older foods. But for the sake of the environment and your precious pennies, don’t fall into the trap of throwing away food before smelling and observing.
