Contents
- DDM or DLC expiration dates: what’s the difference?
- What foods are dangerous once they have expired?
- Can you give your baby expired food?
- What are the foods that do not go bad?
- Does chocolate go out of date?
- Fish: can we eat expired salmon?
- Food preservation rules at DDM or DLC
- Can we eat yogurt that has expired, even 2 months old?
We sometimes want to limit food waste by exceeding the expiration date of our food by a few days… With what type of products can we do this? Can we afford it with baby food? You just need to have a few rules in mind to run no risk for us and our children!
DDM or DLC expiration dates: what’s the difference?
Food manufacturers must indicate a expiration date on their packaging but these deadlines differ depending on whether it is a DDM or a DLC.
What does DDM mean?
DDM is the date of minimum durability of a food. In other words, it is accompanied by a mention of the type “to be consumed preferably before”. This most often concerns: dry products such as rice or pasta, cans or purees, sauces, compotes, or even fruit juices.
When your packaging contains a DDM, this therefore indicates that if you consume the food beyond the recommended date, it will not present no serious danger to your health. He may simply have lost his nutritional qualities, its taste or changed in texture. On the other hand, it is not recommended for pregnant women, small children and the elderly to eat them: it is better to be extra careful in these situations.
It all depends on storage conditions : if the product has been stored in a dry place, for example, as recommended on the packaging or if it has been transported. On the other hand, if it is a pot of sauce for example whose lid you have opened, the DDM will no longer be valid and you will not be able to consume it for more than 5 days maximum.
Read also
- Storing Breast Milk Properly: The Guide
What does DLC mean?
The DLC, or expiration date, indicates the maximum shelf life of your food. This means that if you consume them beyond the BBD, these more sensitive foods may have risks for your health. We recognize the DLC by the formula “To consume until …” written on the food packaging.
At your own risk, therefore, if you consume: unsterilized ready-made meals, meats, fish, certain dairy products and the majority of fresh products that are kept in the refrigerator and which are very sensitive after the date set by the DLC. To avoid any food poisoning, we therefore advise you to respect the food consumption deadline. These are also withdrawn from the sale when it comes to an end.
Read also
- How to protect baby from food poisoning?
What foods are dangerous once they have expired?
Warning: exceeding the DLC for certain foods can be dangerous for health. There is a risk of salmonellosis, staphylococcus or food poisoning if you consume expired food such as:
– expired red meat
– from ready meals in stale sauce
– shrimp and sea products in expired packaging
– ready-to-use salads
– expired milk
– expired unpasteurized fruit juices
– unpasteurized, expired raw milk cheeses
– expired eggs
– cold cuts or expired raw poultry
Generally speaking, DLC or not, you also have to rely on the smell, color and consistency of the foods you eat. These sensory indicators should alert you ! If in doubt, it is of course preferable not to consume them. Likewise, be careful with tin cans when their lid is domed, there is then a risk of botulism.
Little tip about eggs to be sure that they are still good: immerse them in a bowl of cold water! If they are out of date, they will float; if they are cool, they will stay at the bottom.
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- Listeriosis in pregnant women
Can you give your baby expired food?
The answer is of course formally negative. The baby food : small jars of purees, gourds of compote, powdered milk, drinks, cookies whose use-by date has passed should not be given to a child.
We must be extra vigilant on this point because, in addition to the health risks to which these products expose a toddler, his digestive system is still too immature to tolerate them well, especially if they present any risk to his health. .
Read also
- How long does a can of powdered milk keep?
What are the foods that do not go bad?
Some ingredients can be used safely and for no time limit!
Does sugar expire?
It’s the case :
– sugar, whether white or red
– salt, whether fine or coarse or flavored with aromatic herbs
– cornstarch, which thickens a cream or lightens the dough of a cake
– honey, in all its varieties
– spices, but which can however lose their taste
– dry cookies
– white rice
– legumes
– pasta
– of flour
– vinegar
– Coffee
– tea
Read also
- How to limit sugar in children’s diets?
Expiration date: can we drink unopened expired milk?
When the bottle of sterilized UHT milk has a minimum durability date (MDD), this means that it can still be consumed several days after the date indicated. But under certain conditions: that it has not been opened and that you have taken care to store it in a dry place at a constant temperature. Good to know : once opened, the milk bottle can be kept for 2 to 5 days in the refrigerator.
Does chocolate go out of date?
Chocolate is one of the foods that keep the best! Even after the date indicated. Be careful, it will tend to whiten a little and become more crumbly and probably give your cakes less flavor. But chocolate, even expired, does not involve any risk for your health, provided, of course, not to abuse it too much! A tip: prefer dark chocolate, less sweet and richer in magnesium.
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- Everything you want to know about chocolate
Fish: can we eat expired salmon?
Le smoked salmon is generally consumed under vacuum, in its packaging, for 2 to 4 weeks depending on the shelf life, or use-by date indicated. Once opened, it cannot be kept for more than 2 days in the refrigerator.
On the other hand, be aware that a salmon expired on the packaging but which has been vacuum-packed in the freezer in accordance with the rules of the cold chain can be eaten even if its date does not “authorize” you to do so. In any case, also trust its appearance: its flesh must be lively and its smell pleasant.
Read also
- 8 foods not to freeze
Food preservation rules at DDM or DLC
Some foods may contain storage indications on their packaging. To benefit from all their benefits, pay attention to these mentions:
– “Keep in the freezer” indicates that the food must be stored at -18 ° C
– “Keep in the refrigerator” means that the temperature must vary between 2 and 5 ° C
– “Keep cool”: no more than 15 ° C outside the fridge!
– “Store at room temperature”: between 18 ° C and 22 ° C
– “Keep dry”: choose a place where the humidity does not exceed 70%
– “Store in a humid and cool place”: preferably between 6 ° C and 15 ° C with a humidity rate of up to 90%
Can we eat yogurt that has expired, even 2 months old?
This is the big question that everyone is asking themselves to fight against food waste! According to tests carried out on sixty products by the magazine 60 Millions de consommateurs, yogurts would not present any risk to be consumed 3 weeks after the date indicated on their packaging, whether they are plain, fruit or flavored yoghurts, and of industrial origin… We therefore avoid consuming them. when they have expired for 2 months!
A given to be taken with a grain of salt, however, even if the yogurt has only expired for a few weeks, and should not be applied to toddlers! Your flair remains your best ally when it comes to evaluating the taste of your favorite stale yogurts.