During the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders, conversations frequently center around that pressure-canned food and meat discovered in the far corners of the pantry.
This raises the question: how long does pressure canned meat last? When and under what circumstances is an expiration date meaningless?
To get the final word on the safety of both home- and store-bought canned foods, we spoke with food and nutrition experts. Keep reading to know the answer to the question of how long does pressure canned meat last!
Table of Contents
How should we interpret the “expiration date” in pressure canned meat products?
Here is what the food and nutrition expert and consultant Amanda Webster says:
These dates are on the very strict end of the spectrum. It is also worth noting that the age of food is not what makes you sick, it is whether the food becomes contaminated. If they taste, look and smell fine, they pose very little danger. Most ‘best by’ dates have little to do with food safety and more to do with food quality and are provided by the manufacturers, not by any overseeing organization. They’re meant to let the consumer know how long they can guarantee optimum freshness and taste.
Amanda Webster, food and nutrition expert
How long does pressure canned meat last?
According to registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller, canned meats should be kept in a cool, dry environment for two to five years in order to maintain their best quality.
Cans with visible signs of damage such as dents, rust, or swelling are not safe to eat. When stored in a cool and dry place canned meats are safe indefinitely. And the longest you can safely keep canned foods if stored in a dark, dry pantry? Forever.
Another opinion stated by the blog Cheapism is that the “best before” date for home canned goods is one year from the date on the label.
This date is not meant to be a safety deadline but rather an inventory management deadline to help maintain the high quality of your pantry stock.
The seal on your home-canned goods should, in theory, remain intact forever, and as long as it does, the contents are secure.
Experts advise trying to use up items before a year and giving priority to using up items that have just passed the year mark because quality and nutritional value may start to decline after about a year on some items (later on others).
Let us assure you, though, that properly canned foods made at home will never spoil. In actuality, however, it can easily last for at least 2 to 5 years without losing any of its flavor or nutritional value.
The shelf life of canned foods is influenced by a variety of factors, but in general, foods with a high acidity (such as pickles, juices, tomatoes, and all types of fruits) go bad much faster than foods with a low acidity (such as canned poultry, stews, pasta, and meat), which can last for a very long time.
Toss the cans out if they begin to bulge, leak, or become rusty. To make sure that your items are protected from moisture, keep them stored in a cool, dry place.
Conclusion
So that’s it! To answer the question of how long will pressure canned meat last, it’s essentially forever. However, it is best to prioritize eating it within 5 years. Also, never eat from cans that are broken, rusted, or dented!
Now that you’ve known, perhaps you would be interested in learning more about pressure canning roasted beef, which will make a fine addition for your canned food.
We hope you learned something useful from this blog and let us know below!
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