Why do canned goods take such a long time to expire?

Question

Like how can you eat meat and fish years after production?

In: 388

Answer 1

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.

Answer 2

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.

Answer 3

[removed]

Answer 4

[removed]

Answer 5

In traditional canning it is because the food is cooked within the sealed container. All of the germs die from the heat and new germs have no way of entering.

Answer 6

In traditional canning it is because the food is cooked within the sealed container. All of the germs die from the heat and new germs have no way of entering.