How Long Should Food Be Kept in the Freezer?
This is the age-old argument in most households that applies to freezers and refrigerators: “Is this still good?”.
Now, I may have made plenty of reasons why that burrito from last week may still be good to eat for lunch today, but it doesn’t mean I should…
Having a general idea of a timeline for how long you can store food; especially in your freezer, will help you when it comes to planning a food storage plan and keeping your family healthy and safety.
Our family uses freezing food as one way we do long and short-term prepping. We have a small chest freezer in our garage that we rely on to keep our stored items cold and safe.
The only downside to this is relying too much on electricity to keep our food storage good. The electrical grid is weak and could get knocked out at any time. And many of us could be without the power needed to keep it frozen or cold.
If left untouched, food in your freezer can keep up to 8 hours before the temperature becomes unsafe. Because you might end up losing most of your frozen and refrigerated food if an extended blackout occurs, you may think that you shouldn’t keep plenty of food frozen in the meantime. In fact, it’s a good idea to do that.
The keys here are to wrap and package these foods before you stick them in the freezer, put a date on each of them as a reminder, and then eat them before they go bad. Even when frozen, food will lose some of its quality, so make sure you consume it before that happens.
Here are some general guidelines on how long different foods can stay frozen and still be healthy to eat. None of these are guarantees.
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Meat. One month for bacon, two months for hot dogs and ham, four months for raw hamburger and chicken, nine months for lamb, and up to a year for steaks and pork roasts.
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Seafood. Two months for canned seafood, three months for shellfish and fatty fish, six months for shrimp, scallops and lean fish, 10 months for crab, and up to a year for lobster.
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Fruits and vegetables. The general consensus is one year for vegetables and non-citrus fruits. Nuts and citrus fruits would be three months each.
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Desserts and Breads. Two months for baked pies, three months for pancakes, cheesecake, baked bread and cookie dough, eight months for baked cookies and baked fruit pies, and up to a year for baked muffins.
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Eggs and Dairy. One month for raw eggs and cottage cheese, two months for ice cream and yogurt, six months for cheese, nine months for butter, and up to a year for margarine.
14 Comments
I totally disagree with these time lines, Bread yes don’t last to long bacon ham hamburger lamb a very very long time provided of course its kept frozen . a smoked picnic [bone in ham] 2years plus beef 1.75 years as I am eating that now. And no I don’t eat crap if it is not good I would toss no problem. You really need to do more research or perhaps eat what you have stored. I have. Very poor information.
As far as can food goes, my mother told me that so long as the lid on the can has not popped up it’s still good to eat even though the date on the can has expired.
I have heard that strawberries are one of the most genetically altered fruits, so I’m very leary.
I like what you do, Frank, and if I had more money, I’d buy all that you sell. But this is humorous. At 86, I’m presently alone. Bought a big 18 0z. box of corn flakes. Exp. date –12/25/15. They’re still good —now down to bottom of box. Since then use only fresh cooked whole grain cereals. Have 20.5 oz. box Grapenuts —exp 5/13/16 — still good. Use these only when I have no time for the other.
Any hunted game. They contain no drugs like all farm raised animals or hormones to make the fat.
You have to remember the last time I heard this no foreign country will buy or beef.I still have elk in my freezer we eat that is 3 years old.
We make fruitcake every year (have a number of friends and relatives who love it) and I keep one from each batch trying to determine how long it is good. the last “old” one we tried was 16, yes, 16 year old and still very good. They are each triple wrapped and kept in the freezer all the time. I figure that it is ever bit as good as pemmican when it comes to survival food.
I use a Food Saver vacuum sealer. I use the Game Saver because it’s best for bulk sealing. It extends the life of frozen food up to about 5 years, assuming of course that they stay frozen. I am told by the company that manufactures the food saver that so long as ice crystals remain in the food it is safe to eat and can be frozen again.
I’ve had extensive lights-out when power lines went down in a blizzard and of course, the repair people can’t get out to fix them any sooner than I can, so the wait was a week long and of course in the dead of winter. Easy as pie to keep things frozen. Take them out of the freezer, put them in sturdy thick plastic boxes, and put them outside whether intruders, including animals, can’t get at is, and it will stay frozen solid, buried in the snow, until the lights come back on. Of course, it’s not that easy in the summer. In that case, I’ve been told not to TOUCH the freezers or refrigerator lest I let in one speck of hot air. When it’s over, they say, open it all and save what you can. Lovely, after a week. But even then, some can be saved.
If there is credible evidence that it will be a long time before power comes back on, there is some good sense in using what you can before the rest spoils — about 3 days worth.
I live in what HS has determined is a survival area. If the closest city is bombed, because it has an air force base. I’m told that our area would lose power for probably 30 days but not much longer since this would be the area where survivors would settle, having lost their own homes. They have inspected my home as a possible location for their own displaced employees and find that I am remarkably prepared; I have two beds, two hide-a-beds, two very comfortable cots, and a twin sized stack of really nice stuff to sleep on, as well as a nearly inexhaustible supply of blankets and copious numbers of pillows.
Therefore, I would be a candidate for a monster big generator which would resolve my food problem nicely but overrun my house with uniformed types. Which is not entirely bad since I am disabled woman living alone way out in the boondocks,
Oh, and I am an avid canner. I have probably sixty to 100 bottles of canned fruits and vegetables on hand all the tune and dried fruits and meats in airless containers. In summary, I’d say I’ll survive best if I can stay in my home, but I can survive outside of it, too.
Sounds like you’re doing all the right things there, Jade. Keep up the good work to keep yourself self-reliant.
Just opened a 1991 elk backstrap which was frozen in a freezer zip-lock then wrapped in white freezer paper. It was fine.
04/13/2018
If you purchase a machine that takes all the oxygen out of the package, your items will last a very long time.
I have kept most of stuff in there twice as long except for bacon in it just doesn’t last that long never tried freezing eggs
I always thought that I would can or smoke what I could if power was out for extended time. Always have jars and rings and lids on hand and pectin for jams and stuff.
I always go be the Best By dates on canned foods (best by plus 6 months unless the cans show any abnormalities. As far as frozen foods, are concerned, the ambient temperature in the freezer, and how it is packaged determines the freshness and use by dates. Most food packaged by vacuum sealing lasts for over a year, no matter what it is. If you didn’t date it, and it looks funky or freezer burnt – toss it. The item may still be good for consumption, but why chance it? Now, I use the freezer in the fridge for ice, and the little 4 cu/ft chest freezer for items I will consume very soon – less than three months. I spend the most money on canned or freeze dried foods that need no refrigeration. I lose power, no worries.
Dear Frank,
Hmmmm??????? I’m not challenging you here, but I’ve never seen these frozen food schedules before. However, I’ve seen others that are very contradictory to these estimates.
Plus, by using our food vacuum bag preservation machine we have meats. fish and birds that last several years and remain edible and delicious. The same with other foods, veggies and fruits.
Additionally, home canning food (done right) like grandma and grandpa used to do, can last and last and last when stored properly.
Point of interest: This in anecdotal, of course, but a couple years ago when the flood knocked out our power for days … we got busy!!! We cooked, canned, smoked and or dried all the domestic and wild meats we had in our freezers to save it. A LOT OF MANUAL WORK over open fires!!!
God Bless,
Orrin