Keep Your Food Stored Properly.

February 19, 2010 by Johnny
Filed under: Gourmet Foods

Freeze dried food is commonly found in emergency food storages. What could be done to make it last longer?
Freeze dried food is the one that lost 98 percent of water. This food does not have any bacteria or insects on it. That is why this food has a very long shelf life. But freeze dried food still have one enemy left. And this enemy is oxygen.
If your freeze dried food does not contact with oxygen, it could last for more than 30 years. This means that even in 25-30 years these food products will taste the same way and have the same nutritional value. Even beyond this period of time these food products will be safe to eat, but they might taste or look differently.
Oxygen absorbers are the common way to extend the shelf life of your freeze dried foods. They are materials that actively react with oxygen. They combine with oxygen and therefore remove it from the environment. Iron powder and iron carbonate are usually used in oxygen absorbers. They are very effective.
Oxygen absorbers react with oxygen until they are fully oxidized. This means they cannot react with oxygen any more. That is why you need to make sure your oxygen absorbers are properly sealed before you use them.
If you want to use oxygen absorbers for your freeze dried food, just put them in the container of food before it is sealed. This way oxygen absorber will absorb all the oxygen that gets into the container over the period of storage. And no oxygen will be left to react with the food.
There are two major types of oxygen absorbers on the market. One of them requires moisture to work. It is usually used for storing bread and meats which contain some moisture. And another type of absorbers contain their own moisture and therefore could be used for storing dried foods.
You need to understand that any vacuum container will let some air inside over the years. Even if it is a top quality container. That is why oxygen absorbers are needed. They are able to absorb oxygen that is present in the air initially during the packing process. And afterwards they will also be able to absorb oxygen from the air that leaks in over time.
Oxygen absorbers will allow to greatly extend the shelf life of your dried foods. And this means you will be able to save some money on your food storage program.
Nitrogen packing is another common way of fighting oxygen in foods. Here the container is packed in a nitrogen environment or is flushed with nitrogen. This means that containers are filled with nitrogen, but not air. And this in turn means they have no oxygen inside initially.

Do you know that food storage can save you from lots of troubles during different emergency cases. Learn more about food storage on this food storage blog.

Share and Enjoy: