When do you throw out old cans of food?

[Duer 157099]

I mean, do you go through your cupboards periodically and check dates on cans, or just as you notice, or ?

And how strictly do you consider the dates? What if there are cans of soup that are dated from 2010, should I open them up and throw them down the garbage disposal?

If there were an emergency such as an earthquake, I bet I'd eat canned soups that were a year old, rather than go hungry.

:shrug:

[Skittles]

1. I follow the expiration dates

[Duer 157099]

2. And then what? Open them and empty contents down sink?

Do you do a bunch at a time or just as they are discovered?

[Skittles]

3. I write dates large on top of cans that are stored

and tend to get to them before they expire - I was brought up by a depression survivor and a WWII survivor - I don't throw away food. If I DID find a can that had expired I guess I would open it, garbage disposal the contents and toss the can

[dana_b]

4. you're supposed to throw them out??

:think:

Seriously - my grandma rarely threw stuff out. When she died (1993), there were cans in her cupboard from the 70s/early 80s.

[Duer 157099]

5. Well that is sort of where I'm heading

I don't eat very much canned food, but I have plenty of it because of disaster preparedness paranoia.

[RebelOne]

6. I have cans that I have had stored since the 2000 Y2K scare.

So I guess I will have to start cleaning out my cupboard.

[Kali]

7. when they start leaking

year old cans? pppfffftttt I wouldn't even give them a thought unless they were bulging

[GoCubsGo]

8. For canned goods, those dates are more for quality than safety.

Canned food that is dated to use by 2010 is probably fine to eat--as long as the cans were stored in a cool, dry place. However, it may not taste as fresh was it would had you used it last year or sooner. The date is more a "best quality" thing than a safe/not safe date. If the cans are swelling, damaged, or rusty, toss them out.

[Brother Buzz]

9. In the Army, I ate C-rations that were canned a year after I was born

The only ones that was questionable were the vile cans of 'Ham and Mothers'.

[Kali]

11. WTF are "mothers"?

:scared:

[Brother Buzz]

14. Some sort of wicked flatulence-producing bean native to Peru

[Kali]

15. hahhaha

some would say "wicked flatulence-producing bean" is redundant

[MiddleFingerMom]

20. Those were my FAVORITES!!! It got COLD in Germany... and Army sleeping bags are not called...

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... "fart-sacks" for nuthin'!!! Wicked flatulence can be seen as a serious survival
factor.
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Actually, I LOVED the almost-universally detested "ham-and-eggs" and, by doing
so, could make some GANGA trades in C-rations -- many peaches and/or pound
cakes were mine in exchange for "better" C-ration entrees for those h-&-e's.
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Our ambulance had a heat-exhaust outlet near at the floor of the back compartment
that could heat up C-rations faster than any Sterno stove I'd even seen.
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[bluesbassman]

21. I was attached to a combat engineer unit. The C's were better than the field cooked gruel.

I've got a cast iron stomach, but that field mess was just plain nasty. :puke:

BTW, never knew you served in Germany. Where? I was stationed in Nürnberg at Merrell Barracks. Also spent a lot of time in Grafenwoehr playing in the mud. :)

[MiddleFingerMom]

26. HA!!!! Merrell Barracks medic HHT 2ACR (attached to Air Cav Troop)...

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... '73 - 76.
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If you were there about the same time, I was the one who streaked the theater... and was
one of the four to streak the Regimental Hail & Farewell goodbye party for the Flight Surgeon,
Doc Deal (s'funny what your claim to fame can be).
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Spent WAY too much time at Graf, though we got to sleep in our field ambulance.
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Damn shame they never really turned us loose on the East Germans with our tongue depressors --
splinters can get pretty infected and ruin a dammcommie's ability to fight.
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[bluesbassman]

28. No way!! That was you? They erected a statue to commemorate the event behind the bowling alley!

:rofl:

I was there right after you late '76 to '79. Some good memories from there.

We left the comrades alone, I think that's where all the good hash came from. :smoke:

[MiddleFingerMom]

29. "Erected" is in no uncertain terms the wrong verb to use... it was a VERY cold, drizzly night.

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That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
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[Major Nikon]

10. If the can is leaking or swollen, I throw it away

Otherwise there's no need to throw them away for safety's sake.

[Tyrs WolfDaemon]

12. I thought that they were supposed to get better when they

leaked or were swollen.


I can't believe I've been doing it wrong all these years.

[Major Nikon]

13. You can get extra colors that way

Whether or not that's a good thing is up to you.

[Tyrs WolfDaemon]

22. On the way in or the way out?

Fruit Loops can do that to you too.

[BiggJawn]

17. Had a can of tomato juice let go once...

It was about 7 years old and had bulged the ends of the can out before splitting a seam.

[Kali]

19. I had a can of sourkraut that I bought just for the label

(yes my kitchen decor tends to the weird and humorous) - that stuff eventually dissolved the metal - it never bulged, just rotted out at the surface level of the contents :scared:

[Tyrs WolfDaemon]

23. Crusty old Vegan Vampires love aged Tomato Juice

Luckily for me there are plenty of deer in the neighborhood for when I'm hungry

[madrchsod]

16. i follow the dates...

threw out about 10 or so expired cans and boxes

[ForeverFlashy]

18. Expiration date

I periodically check my stocks, since it's just a couple of cans anyway.

[HipChick]

24. After 2 bouts of serious food poisioning...one of which required a trip to the hospital

Things get chucked out based on expire dates...waste is a lot easier for me to handle

[nadine_mn]

25. I think I average a year past the date before I toss them

Although I made a pasta dish for my dogs and gave them cans I found that were 4 yrs past - they seemed ok with it - they were just excited to have a homemade dinner.

I try to rotate my cans regularly. We have only one cupboard so space is at a premium and I try to keep things organized, the problem is when the Mr. puts groceries away... he just shoves things around so older stuff is pushed way back. Sigh.

My grandma always worried about botulism and drilled that fear into me.

[MayHamm]

27. Throw it out? Very seldom.

If you look at or taste outdated canned food you'll find that it is nearly every time just as good as the day it was processed.

Packaged foods that include flour - such as cake mix or pasta - will get stale after a while, but it's generally still edible if you can get past the flavor with spices or seasonings.

[femmocrat]

30. I adhere to the expiration dates.

I opened old tomato sauce once and it definitely had a metallic taste.

I just throw out the entire can. I don't empty it first.

[noamnety]

31. A list of expiration dates:

http://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/surprising-expiration-dates-10000000676079/page2.html

There are a lot of entries like this:

"Mayonnaise
Unopened: Indefinitely
Opened: 2 to 3 months from “purchase by” date (after this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume)

Mustard
2 years (after this time, color or flavor may be affected, but product is still generally safe to consume)"

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I just made bread for thanksgiving from whole grain wheat (that I ground Thanksgiving morning) that I got a couple years ago off craigslist that they had bought for their Y2K preparations.

[Old Troop]

32. I seem to be immune, so never.

[alphafemale]

33. It's canned in a vacuum.

Unless it's dented leaking or rusted it's fine.

[dimbear]

34. Weird. There's a boxing day, no canning day. n/t