How Long Will Canned Foods Last?

Originally posted by Doomsday 2029
I bought some canned salmon the other day...
Expiration date was 2014. That's the longest expiration date I've seen on some canned foods at your regular grocery store.

Tuna is 2012

Canned vegetables are generally 2010

Yep, just got back from town with more food to add to the growing stock pile!
Canned fish, mackeral, tuna 2012
Very disapointed in the expiry date of some packets of dried veges though(only 12 months), but I`ll take my chances with these , as I imagine they won`t ferment and give you a nasty bout of food poisoning like canned produce.
Salt and sugar is about to be vacum packed.
As with rice and flour, except I will freeze these two items first.

I stocked up big time for Y2K. I ate one of my cans of mushroom soup about a week ago that had superficial rust on the outside of the can. I didn't have any problems belly ache wise. The macaroni and cheese and ramon noodles are still o.k. too. I think those experation dates are the soup companies way of saying the warehouse is getting full and it's time to throw out the "old" and buy the new.

Thought I'd post this! Great site!
survivalacres.com...

This is the shelf life chart for dehydrated food.
Lots of good info on this site!
Aluminum very bad, glass good!
Don't forget the heirloom seeds!
I've ate moms homeade chili after 5 years with no
problems and was very good! Just be sure to cook well!
As long as its sealed good, should last a long, long time.
Granted may not taste real good or be real good for you,
but...it's food!
Thanks for the great info and posts! Especially about freezing!
Really glad you all are stocking up!
Does not take a scientist to see the smarts or value in it!



[edit on 27-2-2009 by dodadoom]

reply to post by korath

You are so right!!! My wife always wants to throw out prescriptions
as soon as they hit the expo date. I tell her they just want you to
buy them over and over. They lose a little potency over time, is all.
I usually double the EXPO date on most things and that seems to
work good. IMHO!
Except dairy products, meat, fresh veggies & eggs, bread, etc.
Stuff like that obviously goes bad alot sooner of course.
You can get powdered and dehydrated dairy products.
Like will start sucking pretty quick without these things.
We have a little bread machine that really makes really good bread!
Some chickens for FRESH eggs and fresh veggies out of the garden! MMMM! We rotate everything always too!

Back to water for a moment. Considering that over time, the plastic will leach into the water, how long in a food grade 55 gal drum before that would occur? Also, assuming that the water has passed that time of plastic mixing, what type of filtration/purification would eliminate the plastic from the water?

reply to post by Wolf321

Hi, I have heard you are supposed to refill with fresh water
every 6 months no matter what container you are using.
I agree, we have a reverse osmosis purifier and that should do it
as far as filtering any plastic. If things are that bad we probably
will have more to worry about. But just a random thought.
You can buy water purification tablets or use plain bleach also
to kill germs in questionable sources. Not sure of the amount
but you can put a few drops of bleach in a gallon to keep good.
Never tried it and not sure, but I have read alot about this stuff.
www.baproducts.com...
www.survival-center.com...

Originally posted by dodadoom
reply to post by korath

 

You are so right!!! My wife always wants to throw out prescriptions
as soon as they hit the expo date. I tell her they just want you to
buy them over and over. They lose a little potency over time, is all.

That might be true for some drugs, but I wouldn't take the chance with old antibiotics. I would probably stock up on aspirin and tylenol, and some dried herbs that are good for medicinal purposes. Even better, would be to grow my own medicinal herbs.

[edit on 28-2-2009 by virraszto]

reply to post by virraszto

Good point, thank you. While I have had good luck, it doesnt mean
everyone will! I try to have fresh antibiotics around because
that is one area I dont mess with personally, I can't be sick and
miss work, plus we have good prescription insurance now too.
So true about the herbs! Get a book and study them! I have had
fantastic experiences with natural healing methods and probably
would not still be around without them!(red clover blossoms)
You can grow them right in your kitchen as well as several
different kinds of veggies! Best houseplants you can have!


[edit on 28-2-2009 by dodadoom]

I will tell you this: most things have a WAY shorter expiration date than what they are actually good for.

If your refrigerator is very, very cold, you'd be surprised how long items can stay good in it.

I know for a FACT that ketchup is good for 1 year. FACT.

Eggs are good for at least 1 month (but sometimes freeze, so you have to let them sit out and thaw out).

There are others, but I won't go into into it. Find out for yourself. You'll be surprised at how long food can actually "survive".

This site says you can store water for 3 to 5 years if you do it right. The 55 gallon drums that are made for water are supposed to be safe and not leech. www.storablefoods.com...

I freeze rice, flour, noodles, lentils, and a barley for 24 hours, then I let them get to room temp before vaccuum sealing. Dehydrated eggs can be stored for up to 15 years.

reply to post by dodadoom


stay away from expired aspirin.it becomes toxic.

Originally posted by angryamerican

Originally posted by Yarcofin
Just one point I thought I'd make...

You have to be careful with bottled water, since you mentioned it, as the plastic will eventually start to leech into the water, and it is filled with carcinogens and other chemicals.

I would imagine aluminum cans do the same thing over a long enough period of time, although I've never heard one way or the other.

[edit on 26-2-2007 by Yarcofin]

Do not ever use aluminum to store water or anything else. Aluminum is A cause of alzheimer's disease. There is aluminum in alot of things we use everyday and part of the problem is we are being over exoposed. Antacids, deodorant, water, and cooking utincils all have aluminum in them. Autoposy of alzheimers victims have shown elevated aluminum in the brain as compared to non alzheimers patients. It isnt the total cause but a piece of the puzzle. After watching my grandmother die with alzheimers we got rid of every thing Aluminum. We use cast iron pans only now and for stomach upset we look for non aluminum based antacids. There are a few deodorants out there if you look hard enough. Just minamise your exposure as much as possible to survive with your brain intact to a ripe old age.

During the 1960s and 1970s, aluminum emerged as a possible suspect in Alzheimer’s. This suspicion led to concern about exposure to aluminum through everyday sources such as pots and pans, beverage cans, antacids and antiperspirants. Since then, studies have failed to confirm any role for aluminum in causing Alzheimer’s. Experts today focus on other areas of research, and few believe that everyday sources of aluminum pose any threat.

www.alz.org...

I would believe that you can only stockpile food for so long... Eventually you are going to have to leave your fort and find food..By that time I would suspect easily accessible food to be scarce. So that being said I would think a decent day pack, not a military rucksack-you wanna blend in remember?!, packed with small and durable hunting/fishing gear could outlast any stockpile of food. That is, if you know what to do with it. Don't get me wrong I'm all for stockpiling, the small collection I had going I ended up giving to my family when we were going through some hard times but in the end if there is a balance between paranoid stockpiling and Outdoor/Urban survival and self sufficiency education you should be good to go.

reply to post by dodadoom


Please tell me how one goes about keeping fresh antibiotics around ?? just askin?

Storing Pasta, rice, wheat, flour, etc

The best way, which stores them indefinitely is to use carbon dioxide.

Co2 kills most vermin like wevils and either kills eggs or prevents them from hatching. Food packed in CO2 is better than a partial vacuum.

The method is simple; dry ice sublimates and gives off a great volume of CO2. Since CO2 is heavier than air, it sinks to the bottom of a food-grade bucket or barrel, thus forcing regular air out and over the top, Then you put a lid on it and it is fine until the seal is broken. I have eaten pasta that was secured in 1988; I tasted it in 2001 and you couldn't detect any difference.

See this FAQ for the skinny: The Food Storage Faq

reply to post by FlyersFan


There are survivalist stores?!? I think my brain just squealed!what is the name of one? Should I just search 'survivalistist store' or are they called something else?