Brock stresses food quality and safety at home
An employee of the Mississippi State University Extension Service since 2003, Fran Brock's main programming area is family and consumer sciences specializing in food safety, health, nutrition, and family financial management, and one of the major factors that she preaches is paying attention to the dates on food.
For their weekly program on Tuesday, March 7, the Kiwanis Club of Starkville had Brock visit and give a presentation on food quality and safety at home.
While packages on some foods, such as milk, may say, “Freshest tasting within 7 days of opening,” that is meant to refer to quality and not safety. Foods that require temperature control, including perishable foods like meats and cheeses, have a much shorter shelf-life than shelf-stable foods such as crackers or unopened canned foods.
When it comes to food safety and proper storage, Brock says that food quality and safety both depend on factors such as the type of food, how it has been stored, processed, and how long the package has been open. But what also goes a long way is proper storage timing in the refrigerator and freezer for foods.
Brock says the thing about expired foods is that you can't tell by just looking at the food or smelling it whether or not there is harmful bacteria in the food. So the question Brock answered is what temperature you should keep food in your refrigerator and freezer.
“You want your refrigerator to be at 40 degrees or lower, but you don't want to get past 32 because that's when food starts to freeze. You want your freezer to stay at zero degrees because we know frozen foods should be frozen. Even though water freezes at 32 degrees, you want your freezer at zero degrees to ensure your food is frozen,” said Brock.“one of the ways that you can do this is by having thermometers in your refrigerator and freezer. In my refrigerator, it has a dial that says 1-2-3-4-5, but it doesn't tell you the temperature in there. That's why it's good to have a thermometer in your refrigerator and freezer.”
Food businesses want you to know important information about their products, such as nutritional facts, what's in the food, and how long the food should be good for. When people look at the “best by,” “sell by,” and “freeze by” dates, they are commonly called expiration dates. Some people think the dates indicate when the food is no longer safe to eat, but that is not always the case.
Primarily, the “best by” dates let consumers know when to consume the food so it meets the business' quality standards. They are also seen as “best if used by,” “best before,” or “use by.”
Often found on dairy products such as milk or cheeses, or even bakery foods, the “sell by” labels let the store know when it should sell the product, so their customers have products that meet the businesses' quality standards.
Mainly found on meats and other perishable foods, the “freeze by” dates let consumers know when to freeze foods to maintain the quality until it is eaten.these also go by “prepare or freeze by”or “use or freeze by.”