FOOD TIMELINE
Most of us have in our warehouse preserved preserves, canned food or durable food. This food supply serves for moments of emergency or in a situation where we simply do not want to go to the store and cook with the style “what the house gives”. Did you know that some of the foods we store at home can survive you? Thanks to their long shelf life, they could eat their children for decades. Or the children of your children.
After 106 years people in Antarctica discovered a number of old artifacts – including a frozen fruit cake that allegedly belonged to the expedition of British polar bear, Robert Falcon Scott. The dish that was wrapped in a boxed box in the original Huntley and Palmers brand of sweet sweets was supposedly in good condition and apparently food. Such a cake, however, is not the only food that can be edible after decades.
Copper
In 2015, archaeologists reported that they found 3,000-year-old honey in the excavations in Egypt, which was perfectly edible. This resistance is due to the unique properties of honey – it has a low water content and a high sugar content, so it can not grow bacteria. Honey also contains a small amount of hydrogen peroxide that prevents the growth of microbes.
It also helps to process honey because sugars in honey are hygroscopic and tend to suck in atmospheric water, which is not ideal. During processing and packaging, water is first removed during the heat treatment and the airtight lids will not allow it to get inside, which contributes to the durability of the honey. Although honey can be turbid and crystallized when it opens and the sugars are again pumping water, this physical change can be perverse when you heat the honey.
As with honey, it is the key to long processing and storage legumes. Drying beans, lentils and other legumes increases sugar concentration and reduces water content, making it difficult to grow bacteria and fungi. Also, all the enzymes that would naturally decompose the product after the harvest are decomposed by such processing. If the storage container is airtight, the legumes can last for years and will still be a great source of protein. But if it gets water or moisture inside it will last only a few months.
Soy sauce
Soy sauce should last for at least three years. The combination of salt and fermentation means that if it is unopened, it should have a very long shelf life. How long it lasts depends on the type of soy sauce and the temperature at which you store it after you open it. If it is ruined, it is likely that it will be caused by molds around the lid.
White rice
The durability of white rice confirmed a simple test. After 30 years of storage in cans without any problem, it passed through tasting. It seems that the key factors for rice durability are atmosphere and temperature. Studies show that low temperature (about 3 ° C) and oxygen deficiency have a major impact on the durability of rice. Brown rice, although often considered healthier, has a shorter shelf life. Its fibrous bran contains unsaturated fats that can spoil. So if your brown rice is greasy and smells like old color, it’s best to throw it away.
The durability of bitter chocolate is being debated. Adding milk to chocolate can reduce its shelf life. Dark chocolate seems to last longer, although it does not always look like fir. This may be because if it is not kept at a constant temperature, the fat can get out of it and create white flowers that look a bit like mold. However, if kept at a constant temperature, chocolate can last for two years or longer, with concentrations of compounds that sometimes bind to health in it throughout this time. For most people, however, chocolate does not have a long shelf life – because it is very early to eat.
Sugar and salt
Many foods that last for a long time have a high sugar and salt content. Simply put – these substances drain water, so if the bacteria try to grow, they will die again quickly. That’s why we use salt to dry meat and sugar to produce not only jams. Sugar and salt as foodstuffs in themselves, if they are in airtight packaging and moisture does not reach them, will last forever. Problems can be caused by additives such as iodine added to salt, which can reduce shelf life for approximately five years.
Of course, most food will not last. This is because they contain things that literally love microbes, such as different nutrients and water. it should be remembered that consumption data are generally used for safety reasons and that the minimum durability period really affects the quality of the product.