Canned food is one of the staples of post-apocalyptic fiction, and for good reason. It lasts a long time, can withstand a good amount of damage, and is safe and sterile.
But how long does your canned food actually last? It’s not good enough to buy some canned goods, or to even can your own, without knowing exactly how long you’ll be able to count on those goods.
It could be the difference between life and death, and if the worst-case scenario does happen, that’s not something you want to have to worry about. Canned food is a perfect addition to your other long term food options.
canned food storage options
Rotation is one of the best methods for ensuring that you’re using the oldest product first.
The industry term is FIFO, or “first in, first out”, which means that the oldest product is stocked at the front of the shelf and the newest product is stored in the back. This is why the milk with the furthest use-by date is in the back and you have to contort your body to grab it.
When storing your own food, pay attention to the dates, and make sure that the ones that expire soonest are in the front of your pantry, so that those will be used first. This is useful for everyone, not just preppers or those who focus on the worst-case or SHTF scenario.
Consider investing in a labeling machine. Not only will it help with all kinds of organizational projects, but it can be especially useful for labeling canned goods with their expiration dates.
If you have a lot of canned goods, it can be difficult keeping up with what’s expiring and when, especially since most of the expiration dates are printed on the bottom of the cans.
And, since most labels aren’t white, they’ll stand out nicely once placed on the cans, making sure that the dates are easy-to-read.
proper canned food planning
Introspection and self-analysis can be hard, but it’s necessary to ensure that you’re getting the most out of your food and money.
One of the worst feelings is when you have to throw away food because it expired. This can be due to changing tastes, picky kids, trying to take advantage of sales, or even just plain old forgetfulness or inattention.
Taking a hard look in the mirror and then coming up with a food plan is one of the best ways to avoid having to throw food and money into the garbage again.
Know what you and your family will eat and understand that tastes and preferences can change. Also, be mindful of sales. While a great discount can be good for the wallet, be sensible and realistic.
If you only eat carrots if there’s nothing else available, then buying a trunk-load of canned carrots because they’re ten cents each might be a bad idea. Even though they’re cheap, you’ll probably never eat them, making it a waste of money and food.
can your own food
It’s possible to can your own food. And while that may seem like the best idea to some of you more self-inclined types, the truth is that the USDA, the government agency mainly concerned with food safety, recommends a shelf-life of up to one year for all home-canned goods.
And while mileage may vary between the types of food and people who eat ten-year-old peaches and post about it on survivalist message boards online, do you really want to place your trust in that in a worst-case scenario?
Safety trumps everything, so be mindful of what the USDA recommends, because they aren’t doing it for their health; they’re doing it for yours.
Does that mean that you shouldn’t can your own food? Of course not. But use FIFO and labels to ensure that your life, and the lives of your family, are not put at risk for botulism poisoning, salmonella, or E. coli.
If you want to get started canning your own food, check out the links below for recommended equipment.
store bought canned food
Because the USDA can’t regulate what you do at home, they recommended a blanket shelf life for home-canned goods, for better or worse. For commercial facilities, this isn’t true, and the recommendations for store-bought canned goods are much more specific.
There are two kinds of food considered by the USDA when evaluating shelf-life: high-acidic and low-acidic. High-acidic foods are ones with either citric acid, vinegar, or are tomato-based. These have a shelf-life of 12-18 months, as the acid breaks down the food quicker, even in a sealed package.
On the other hand, low-acidic foods have an incredibly long shelf life, up to five years, which make them fantastic for long-term storage, especially when paired with a food planning and rotation system and some way of tracking the expiration dates.
Low-acidic foods include poultry, soups, meats, and a large variety of vegetables like squash, corn, green beans, peas, and okra. It’s important to point out that these are all commercially canned, and not home-canned.
If you’re home-canning, then using commercially-canned high-acidic food is a good option, as they have similar shelf lives and can make it easier to manage expiration dates and a rotation system.
how should you store your canned foods?
It’s not enough to rotate your canned goods and label them. All the preparation in the world won’t mean a thing if you don’t learn how to store your food properly.
Proper storage is one of the things most people forget about when they are building up their food supply, and it can cost lives in an emergency situation.
The number one rule when it comes to food storage can be boiled down to a handful of words: heat shortens shelf life. The best option for storing canned food is to choose a cool, dry place that is relatively temperature controlled and that’s out of direct sunlight.
That’s one of the main reasons a lot of shelters are built underground. Not only does it protect from radiation, extreme weather, and zombies, but it provides an excellent place to store food that won’t affect your canned goods.
Canned goods in tropical locations, and other locations where the temperatures are consistently high have to be specially manufactured to withstand the temperatures without compromising the shelf life of the food.
There are other concerns when it comes to food storage other than temperature. Unless you’re solely relying on home-canned goods (and as we’ve already discussed, that’s not a good option), then the bulk of your canned goods will actually be in cans. Metal cans, to be specific, and metal rusts.
Make sure wherever you store your canned goods is free from moisture, as your cans will rust. Rust oxidizes the metal, weakening it at the molecular level and compromising the integrity of the can.
A lot of stores sell dented cans at a discount, which is an attractive bargain for those looking to build their stockpile. After all, the can is dented but the food will taste the same, right?
In truth, small dents are fine, but deeply dented cans should be discarded, especially if the dent touches the seam of the can. Those dents can cause a tiny break in the seal of the can, allowing bacteria to enter, which can cause sickness or death when eaten. So find your bargains another way.
This should go without saying, but don’t freeze your cans. Some people might think that adding canning to freezing would double the shelf life, but that’s not the case.
Freezing something warps the metal by expanding the contents inside, which leads to the seal being broken. Which is bad. So keep your frozen food frozen and your cans stored properly elsewhere.
canned food fun fact
To break up the monotony of talking about canned goods, let’s talk a little history. Napoleon Bonaparte, the French general and military genius, offered a prize to whomever discovered a way to keep military rations from spoiling.
In 1795, Chef Nicholas Appert won the prize when he presented his process: packing meat and poultry in glass bottles, corking them, then submerging them into boiling water.
This process sterilized the food and killed the bacteria that led to spoilage and sickness. As such, Napoleon is considered the father of canning, which isn’t something that is normally publicized about the former leader of France.
what about botulism?
One of the most serious risks with canned goods is botulism. Botulism is an admittedly rare but still deadly food poisoning that can occur in improperly canned foods, especially low-acidic foods like vegetables, which could pick up the bacteria that causes botulism from the soil.
Symptoms include double vision, trouble swallowing, difficulty breathing, and droopy eyelids, since the poison attacks the nervous system. These appear 12-48 hours after ingestion. Suffocation is the cause of death, as the nerves no longer stimulate breathing.
While there is an antitoxin, there may still be permanent neurological damage, and recovery is often slow.
Thanks to the USDA, FDA, and other organizations dedicated to education and food safety, the cases of botulism poisoning have drastically decreased, but illness and death still occur.
It’s scary to think a can of beans can kill you, but it’s true. Take precautions and act wisely when it comes to food safety and you’ll reduce your chances of poisoning yourself.
Avoid cans that are leaking, bulging, or badly dented – these could all be signs of botulism contamination. Don’t consume food that smells off, if the liquid looks milky when it should look clear, or if the container spurts liquid when you open it.
Make sure that suspect containers are disposed of properly so that other people or animals aren’t inadvertently exposed to the toxin. Double-bag the container, making sure they are tightly closed.
do canned foods really expire?
Expiration date is a bit of a misnomer. The dates printed on food concern quality and not safety, and are not legally required.
Food can be safely consumed past the date printed on the package, but the quality might not be acceptable to most people. While there is no federal law concerning the dating of commercially-available food, some states do require dating.
Most people use these dates as “expiration” dates because they don’t store food in preparation of an emergency event.
The shelf lives described earlier in this article are the ones recommended by the USDA for safety and should be used for foods falling within the categories given.
usda reference chart
