Out of date tinned food.

[flobadob]

Someone once told me that if you opened a tin of beans or whatever today, which was tinned in 1940 they would be absolutely fine to eat. I'm not too worried about eating certain tinned food if only out of date by a few months but is that true of all tinned food? For example could the same be said for luncheon meat or corned beef?

[rockyracoon]

I think it's alright, they dates are usually Best Before. I never look at dates on tins or much else come to that, if it looks and smells ok I'll eat it.

[tommy-h]

I read once where someone had tasted tinned meat that was prepared for Napoleon`s troope march to moscow.After i50 years still consumable-bet it gave him the trots though

[cathfromsaron]

all undamaged tinned food is fine! smell it and check obviously! xx

[heathfield]

Appearance and smell will tell you if it's OK. On very old tins, check there's no rust on the inside of the cans as this sometimes occurs. Stewed steak from the hut of Scott's expedition to Antarctica was fine after 50 years.

[mrs_overall]

last year there was a couple on tv who had been given a tinned chicken as a wedding pressie - 50 years ago. They opened it for their Golden Wedding and it was fine.

As long as the tin is not "blown" or rusty and the contents look & smell OK, then it will be fine

[roxie_09]

ahh you learn something new everyday, i'm always chucking things out because they've gone past a few weeks! I will be changing that habit from now on, save me a few pennies! :D xx

[JonnyBoy12]

I was had some tinned dinosaur that was 65 million years out of date, and that was fine. Tinned food never goes off; they found some in the Antarctic that was nearly 100 years old, and that was still edible.

Hope this helps.

[Old Salt]

'Usually,' if the tin is not bulging, or if it has not suffered a puncture (no matter how small the hole), you will probably be alright. Just take normal food handling precautions based on smell and appearance.

Many generations before “Use by Dates” have survived without too much difficulty. But, these days I admit to often feeling uncomfortable whenever I see food which has passed it’s use by date, but I am sure the food is safe.

Old Salt

[heathfield]

With ''Best Before'', the emphasis is on ''Best''. Manufacturers choose the date, (so they say), to let us know how long the product will stay in top condition. After the displayed date, taste and texture may not be of optimum quality, (so they say). EU labelling regulations are...
1. Best before + Day for foods with a shelf life of up to 3 months.
2. Best before end + Month for foods with more than a 3 month shelf life.
3. Best before end + Year for food with more than an 18 month shelf life.
But I can't see them ever putting something like ''Best Before End 2086'' on the can!

[AKMild]

Loads of food is wasted as a result of 'best before' dates. People should learn to gauge for themselves when food can and cannot be eaten - look and smell are key factors. Dairy and meat and other foods subject to a 'use by' date are more likely to go off, but even then there is usually several days' tolerance, depending on how the food is stored.

If it's dry, powdered, tinned or preserved then it's likely to have a very very long usable life if stored properly. I have just used baking powder with a 'best before' date of April 1999, as I know that baking powder doesn't 'go off' if properly stored.

[JonnyBoy12]

Do ice cubes have a best before date on them? Does anything not have one of these on the packet?

[daftgrandad]

Depends if the ice cubes are fresh or frozen Jonny

[heathfield]

Well Jonny. Ice cubes in ''individual portions'', e.g. a bag of ice cubes from Tescos, do not require a ''Best Before'' date. Nor does salt, vinegar, anything that contains over 10% alcohol, wines and liquers made from fruits other than grapes, soft drinks and fruit juices in containers of 5 litres or more sold to caterers, chewing gum, sugar, flour products normally consumed within 24 hours of preparation, and honey sold directly to the public by the producer. By the way, while it's perfectly legal to sell items which are beyond their ''Best Before'' date, it is totally illegal to sell eggs that are more than 7 days beyond that date.

[yeannow]

It is only in the last 10-20 years best before dates have made their way on to cans therefore millions would have been poisoned before.

[The Builder]

Here's a bit of trivia for you Flobbers ................. someone mentioned Napoleon. Canning was brought in for Napoleon's army.......... but it was 30 years later before someone invented the can opener :o(

[flobadob]

Builder it must have been annoying setting up a guillotine or what have you every time you wanted a corned beef samich. As for eggs Heath, I always eat out of dat eggs, no problem up to 3-4 weeks anyway.

[heathfield]

Me too, Flob, but I'm not allowed to sell them by that stage! ;-)

[smart1]

I remember a few yrs ago seeing on some science prog (I think) that an unopened tin of corned beef was found dating from the Crimea war - upon opening, it was found to be totally edible.