Ordinary food gets spoiled by being exposed to air (oxygen) and by being consumed by microbes (bacteria, mold, fungi, etc).
Canned food is sealed in airtight cans, and then heated to kill all microbes in the can. So there is no air inside the can, and no microbes. Unfortunately this also cooks the food inside, which is why there is no such thing as canned salad greens or canned medium-rare steak.
Ordinary food gets spoiled by being exposed to air (oxygen) and by being consumed by microbes (bacteria, mold, fungi, etc).
Canned food is sealed in airtight cans, and then heated to kill all microbes in the can. So there is no air inside the can, and no microbes. Unfortunately this also cooks the food inside, which is why there is no such thing as canned salad greens or canned medium-rare steak.
Bacteria growth is predicated on the fact that there is bacteria present.
If you have 1 atom of bacteria in a canned good, it can multiply over time. That’s what causes dented or swollen cans.
If you have 0 atoms of bacteria in a canned good, 0 multiplies into 0. You can’t have bacteria grow if there is no bacteria.
When goods are canned, they are cooked in a such a way that attempts to eliminate all of the bacteria. This isn’t 100% effective, but that’s the point of a shelf life. The few cans that do still have bacteria don’t have enough bacteria to multiply into a harmful amount by the shelf life. However, after that shelf life, the vast majority of the cans that have no bacteria in them will still be safe to eat.
Bacteria growth is predicated on the fact that there is bacteria present.
If you have 1 atom of bacteria in a canned good, it can multiply over time. That’s what causes dented or swollen cans.
If you have 0 atoms of bacteria in a canned good, 0 multiplies into 0. You can’t have bacteria grow if there is no bacteria.
When goods are canned, they are cooked in a such a way that attempts to eliminate all of the bacteria. This isn’t 100% effective, but that’s the point of a shelf life. The few cans that do still have bacteria don’t have enough bacteria to multiply into a harmful amount by the shelf life. However, after that shelf life, the vast majority of the cans that have no bacteria in them will still be safe to eat.
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