Food Storage Considerations

To maximize shelf life, foods must be stored properly. For best shelf life of most foods, this means three things:

• Keeping it cool - heat greatly accelerates the natural breakdown of food (why we cook it).
• Keep it completely dark - this prevents bacterial growth.
• For most foods, storing them in an environment with little to no oxygen (less than 0.02%).

The air normally has approximately 21% oxygen content, so something must be used that can remove the oxygen from the air. For this, we typically use oxygen absorbers. They are different than silica packets (which absorb moisture) as oxygen absorbers consume oxygen through a chemical reaction. They do get hot as the chemical reaction takes place, so that should be considered when placing them into a container.

Containers:

Food should only be placed in durable containers that are food safe. There are several options, all with pros and cons.

• Foil Pouches (Mylar Bags) - a pain to seal and easily damaged but are very inexpensive. Only use 5mil or thicker bags and place them within another container such as a plastic bucket to protect them.
• Mason Jars - Fragile and don’t keep out light but are excellent at being airtight.
• Metal Cans (#10 cans) - Do a great job but require special equipment to seal them.
• Food-Grade Plastic Buckets - Excellent durability and at keeping out light. However, they’re not all 100% airtight. As a result, they can slowly let in oxygen over time. Some will and some won’t - it’s difficult to predict which will occur.

Because of all the above considerations, the best option is typically to place food within a sealed mylar bag that is then placed into a food-grade plastic bucket.

Process:

To store foods, follow this process:

1. Ensure the container is clean and completely dry.
2. Fill the container as full as possible. The less air remaining in the container means less oxygen that needs to be consumed. If there’s more oxygen present than the absorber(s) can handle, the shelf life will be diminished.
3. Place oxygen absorber(s) on top of the food into the container.
4. Seal the container.
5. Label the container
6. Wait, then check. It can take a few days (up to a week) for the oxygen absorber to remove all oxygen from the container. The container won’t appear vacuum sealed, but you’ll want to check mylar bags to ensure they’re sealed properly.