Just a note about expiration dates, Mama.
First off, the idea that your own canned goods are only good for a year is sheer nonesense. In theory, there can be some loss of quality after two years. But that may be overstated as well.
From a food safety point of view, if you canned it properly it is just as safe in ten years as in the week after you processed it.
I have stuff we're still eating that was canned in 2002. It's perfectly safe, of course. And based on its looks and taste, there's been no degradation in quality; although I conceed that there might be nutrional loss. The key words there are "might be." But, according to the USDA, the heirlooms I grow start out with higher nutritional values than the produce you buy in the store. That being the case, any loss I suffer probably still leaves me with healthier food.
In terms of commercial foods, most expiration dates are arbitrary, and are put on only because the law specifies that canners have to do so. I have an item bought earlier this year, for instance, with a 2012 expiration date. Does anyone really think the product will suddenly go bad in 2013?
Dried foods have no expiration. There is no way, short of having it get wet, that dried foods can go bad. Indeed, I never understood the people who dry their own foods and then store it in a freezer. What's the point of that?
So, what I'm saying is simple that anyone who shares your concerns need not spend a fortune stocking up from the market, when they can put their own, home-grown foods by with no problems.
First off, the idea that your own canned goods are only good for a year is sheer nonesense. In theory, there can be some loss of quality after two years. But that may be overstated as well.
From a food safety point of view, if you canned it properly it is just as safe in ten years as in the week after you processed it.
I have stuff we're still eating that was canned in 2002. It's perfectly safe, of course. And based on its looks and taste, there's been no degradation in quality; although I conceed that there might be nutrional loss. The key words there are "might be." But, according to the USDA, the heirlooms I grow start out with higher nutritional values than the produce you buy in the store. That being the case, any loss I suffer probably still leaves me with healthier food.
In terms of commercial foods, most expiration dates are arbitrary, and are put on only because the law specifies that canners have to do so. I have an item bought earlier this year, for instance, with a 2012 expiration date. Does anyone really think the product will suddenly go bad in 2013?
Dried foods have no expiration. There is no way, short of having it get wet, that dried foods can go bad. Indeed, I never understood the people who dry their own foods and then store it in a freezer. What's the point of that?
So, what I'm saying is simple that anyone who shares your concerns need not spend a fortune stocking up from the market, when they can put their own, home-grown foods by with no problems.
