Do canned goods expire?
 

I'm on the fence about this. I'm a bit cynical in that I feel that companies often place expiration dates on their products in order to get people to either use them or throw them away and buy more.

We have a lot of caned goods and things like ramen noodles in a hurricane kit and the wife wants to toss a bunch of it.

I can't see how food that is cooked and in an air tight container can go bad. I feel that it's wasteful to throw this stuff out and replace it.On the other hand, I don't want to end up with food poisoning during a hurricane.

I saw something recently where some MREs from World War II were discovered. They were opened and were perfectly fine.

I'd appreciate some opinions.

Instead is tossing use a can a day, make sue the inside of the can has zero deterioration.

We go through our pack every year. And yes have found some can goods after date we’re bad

Canned goods go way beyond date. That’s a best if used by date. When I worked at a food bank they took canned goods a year out.

My understanding is if the can is in good shape with no dents or other defects food will be good.for a long time.

In 1967 I ate C-Rations that had a date of 1958. So it was packed in the can 9 years previous. Mmmm, delicious.

How do you check to see that the inside of can has no deterioration?

How did you find out that the food was bad?

Before we moved here we volunteered with Feeding America mostly sorting cans.

If the can was dented they would use it but if swollen on any surface it was tossed.

At the end of each hurricane season we take all of the non-perishable food that we had specifically stockpiled to use in the event we lost power and gift it to a local food bank

We never have to worry about expiration dates, and this approach frees up much needed storage space.

It's another way for us to give back to our community by sharing with those who are in need

I have experienced both canned and frozen food go bad. A can that bulges contains food gone bad.

About once a year I go through my canned, boxed and frozen food. If it is over a year out of date I toss it. I have found cans that bulged and I could not get rid of them fast enough.

Canned food undergoes chemical changes over time, just like the oil in your crankcase or the gasoline in your gas tank. They are all organic material. Food out of a ten year old can will not be as nutritious or taste as good as food out of a year old can. MREs, K-rations, C-rations and the like are designed to last a long time and they do, as do Spam and Velveeta. These are food products I would only consume in or during an emergency when I could not obtain fresh food.

Nothing last long enough in our house to go out of date.
Back in the day I was in UK military from 1956 until '64. We ate Compo rations from WW2.
Sometimes we were so hungry we would have eaten them if they had been from WW1.
I am still here!!

I served in the Army during the early '70's and during training exercises we ate C-rations with dates from the WW II era. Food
looked and tasted OK. No one got sick as I recall.

You can look at a can and know if it’s bad or really old. Dents can even be okay, but not if they have a pointy edge to them. Another learned thing at a food bank.

Spam and Twinkies. Two things that will outlast us all.. lol

I think it is important to point out that foods you are going to cook, like soup, will be safer than food that you will not cook, like fruit. Heating the food will kill bacteria that make you sick.