Approximate storage times for best quality leftover food
Dears,
Would anyone guide me towards as per any system/standard’s (ISO 22000/BRC/FSSC/SQF) approximate storage times for best quality leftover food. (Veg/non veg)
I would really appreciate, if anyone can shed some light on it.
Thank you in advance,
Dv8.
Dears,
Would anyone guide me towards as per any system/standard’s (ISO 22000/BRC/FSSC/SQF) approximate storage times for best quality leftover food. (Veg/non veg)
I would really appreciate, if anyone can shed some light on it.
Thank you in advance,
Dv8.
Hi Dv8,
My guess is that a scientifically supported answer to yr generic query is non-existent. Reason - too many unknown variables. I don't think any of the FS standards you mention predict food storage times.
With more data, there is a multitude of suggestions available but, afai could see, with limited scientific validation. Many offers of advice assume cooked vegetables and certain other conditions which may or may not relate to yr situation.
A few random examples -
http://www.organicau...-leftovers.html
http://recipes.howst...-the-fridge.htm
http://www.fsis.usda...safety/ct_index
storing food for safety and quality.pdf 1.88MB 18 downloads
keeping food safe.pdf 676.09KB 18 downloads
Dear Charles,
I thank you for the information provided.
As recommended by our auditor, I have to make a leftover procedure along with a table which elucidates food, temp and maximum days to keep in freezer/chiller without any quality change.
However, since we cannot produce any technical reference, I will go with your below derived reference table. http://www.fcs.uga.e...DNS-NE-602a.pdf
Foods
Refrigerator/Chiller (4°C)
Freezer (-22°C)
Opened Eggs
3 days
Do Not Freeze
Egg, Chicken, Tuna, Ham or Macaroni Salad
3-5 days
Do Not Freeze
Cooked meat and meat dishes
3-4 days
2-3 months
Soups and Stew
2 days
2-3 months
Cooked chicken & chicken dishes
3-4 days
4-6 months
Chicken nuggets & patties
1-2 days
1-2 months
Cooked fish
3-4 days
1-2 months
Hot dogs (opened packages)
1 week
1-2 months (wrapped)
Packed meat (opened packages)
3-5 days
1-2 months (wrapped)
Baby Foods
Strained fruits & vegetables
2-3 Days
6-8 months
Strained meats & egg yolks
1 day
1-2 months
Meats & vegetable combinations
1-2 days
3-4 months
Hi Dv8,
The 3-5 days for salads in yr link (given in 2nd pdf) appears generous (and not in agreement with parent document) although opinion perhaps dependent on the specific component. The others links seem to limit to 4 days and (potentially) with max. 2 hr in/out cycle. The specifically safety-oriented pdf mentions 1-2 days after freshly prepared > refrigerator, cf - reject after 2 hrs in a picnic basket. None of the stated suggestions include explicit scientific bases.
From memory, there is some contention over recommended storage times for cut fresh produce depending on geography. I believe (not my product area) that UK unconditionally allows 5 days whereas USA (?) is only 3 days. This is based on product being able to support growth of L.mono although the tolerances may also differ. UK i think allows max 100cfu/g within shelf-life whereas USA maybe zero if RTE.
addenda
After posting previous items I noticed several were not very recent.
I also noticed that several tables are stated as for quality only, not safety. In fact safety-specified lists are rare.
I noticed that date labelling is not mandated in USA.
I was unable to find any list of (safety-specified) storage times for UK.
Accordingly here are a few, more recent examples, -
Safety
Refrigerator Freezer Chart.pdf 36.93KB 10 downloads
(current usfda)(Note there is no data for fresh produce)(science unclear).
refrigerator storage,2010.pdf 192.04KB 14 downloads
(Ohio Uni.)(contains data fresh produce)(ref. given but science unclear)
Leftovers
Discard any food left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours—1 hour if the temperature was above 90 °F (32.2 ºC).
Place food into shallow containers and immediately put in the refrigerator or freezer for rapid cooling.
Use cooked leftovers within 4 days.
USDA - Basics for Handling Food Safely - leftovers.pdf 20.89KB 12 downloads
(current afaik)(science unclear)
Can compare above USDA quote with that derived from my USDA link in earlier post -
Store Leftovers Safely
Leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days or frozen for 3 to 4 months. Although safe indefinitely, frozen leftovers can lose moisture and flavor when stored for longer times in the freezer.
Thanks for the ton of support and thought you guys have put forth to redefine my leftover procedure…
God bless you all and this site too….
Dv8
You've probably got everything you need, but I found this site useful in a previous role www.stilltasty.com It's fairly comprehensive and gives good guidelines for storage at both ambient, refrigerated and frozen.
Thanks for sharing this site.
Mentioned “Still tasty” is indeed a good site helped me to refinement my knowledge in dairy items as well. Nevertheless, most interesting part I like is the Q &A section.
Cheers,
Dv8.
You've probably got everything you need, but I found this site useful in a previous role www.stilltasty.com It's fairly comprehensive and gives good guidelines for storage at both ambient, refrigerated and frozen.
Hi Wyldlce,
Thanks for the link, it's definitely an interesting site, particularly in respect to the scope of data presented.
But afai could see the site suffers from the same problem i found on many other sites - zero indication of safety or non-safety criteria for the times given.
I guess this non-specificity may be related to the hotch-potch of date labelling terms in use which are all legally acceptable. Not just a US problem, the entire topic seems to be a global minefield of confusion.
A lot of science clearly exists, for both safety and non-safety aspects, but its retail implementation looks more like "buyer beware" ?.