# Food storage/use question **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 3, 2026, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311 "2026-01-03T17:58:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/1 "2026-01-03T17:58:37Z")
Advice, please. I’ve been clearing out and rearranging kitchen cabinets and have items, canned, two or three years past their “best by”, “use by” date: baked beans and soup. I have Irish steel-cut oats, unopened can. I have cornmeal, unopened cardboard containers with plastic-sealed lids. Chuck or use? ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/2 "2026-01-03T18:17:02Z")
I have run into this many times. My rule of thumb is to open it up, look at it, and smell it. If it seems off for any reason, discard it immediately. If it seems okay, plan to heat or cook it ahead of time, then use it. This method hasn’t failed me… yet. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/3 "2026-01-03T18:36:41Z")
As long as the cans are in good shape - eg no rust or bulging - administer the smell test. If they are bulging or rusty, toss. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/4 "2026-01-03T18:40:33Z")
The oatmeal and cornbread are probably stale. But I’d be able to smell that in the raw form. (And see if it has actually molded or been infected with moths.) If they look and smell okay, I’d cook and eat them. Start with a small portion that won’t be a problem if you end up chucking it. If you use the canned goods, cook them well. But i would probably toss them. Although this > **[FSHN0406/FS104: Preventing Foodborne Illness: Clostridium botulinum](https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FS104)** > > A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. Published by Nutrition and Food Systems Does say > While the botulinum spores can survive in boiling water, the toxin is heat-labile, meaning that it can be destroyed at high temperatures. Heating food to a typical cooking temperature of 176°F (80°C) for 30 minutes or 212°F (100°C) for 10 minutes before consumption can greatly reduce the risk of foodborne illness (WHO 2023). ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/5 "2026-01-03T18:44:26Z")
I’d probably toss them unless you are really unable to buy food. While it is a bit of a waste these are not expensive items and you have not used them in years. Why keep them or risk eating what you didn’t want to eat in years? I think better safe than sorry and toss them in the garbage bin. YMMV. ETA: DO NOT donate them!!! You’ll just make that charity go to the work of tossing them. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/6 "2026-01-03T18:45:48Z")
If they’ve been on your shelves for 3+ years, you probably have no real desire to use them ever. I would toss them. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/7 "2026-01-03T19:00:49Z")
Yes, I’m leaning toward toss them, and since my town has curbside composting, they’ll at least not be totally wasted. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2026, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/8 "2026-01-03T22:58:06Z")
Canned food stays good pretty much indefinitely, as long as it was canned properly and the can is still intact. And if it’s not canned properly, then it’s already dangerous by the time you buy it. I wouldn’t have any hesitation at all about eating those. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/9 "2026-01-04T02:05:15Z")
If you have birds in the back yard, the oats would be nice for them. Toss the cornmeal. Save the baked beans. ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/10 "2026-01-04T02:24:03Z")
> [@EddyTeddyFreddy](#): > > Advice, please. I’ve been clearing out and rearranging kitchen cabinets and have items, canned, two or three years past their “best by”, “use by” date: baked beans and soup. I have Irish steel-cut oats, unopened can. I have cornmeal, unopened cardboard containers with plastic-sealed lids. > > Chuck or use? put the “time past best by” in relation to overall shelf-life…. and then play it by the ear - FWIW, the best before is OFTEN a very arbitrary period determined by the producer. (This was 10+ years my day job) … We found we can often increase shelf life by 30% w/out any problems … and the “problems” normally were not “gonna make you sick”, but rather “carrots are getting pretty pale” … 1 year over on a sardine-can with 7 years shelf-life is different than 1 year over with a yoghurt. ahh … **if in doubt - throw it out** ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/11 "2026-01-04T05:57:38Z")
Interesting thread! Just today I reorganized my freezer and found two tubs of Cioppino! Not sure of the age, but didn’t look all frozer burned or fucked up. Ate good tonight! ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/12 "2026-01-04T13:23:35Z")
Soup for lunch the other day – three years after the date on the tin. No problems. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/13 "2026-01-04T14:53:54Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > If you have birds in the back yard, the oats would be nice for them. > > Toss the cornmeal. No, give the birds the cornmeal, too. It’s just somewhat ground up corn, and birds love corn. It might seem the pieces are too small to “matter”, but in fact it’s great for the little sparrows and other small brown birds. The big showy birds swoop in and clear out all the big stuff fast, but you’ll often see the smaller birds assiduously searching around for stuff the size of a grass seed or even smaller. Oh – not if it’s moldy, maybe, but animals in winter are a heck of a lot less fussy about freshness than we humans are. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/14 "2026-01-04T19:10:57Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > No, give the birds the cornmeal, too. It’s just somewhat ground up corn, and birds love corn. It might seem the pieces are too small to “matter”, but in fact it’s great for the little sparrows and other small brown birds. Thanks. I had some stale un-popped popcorn, and that disappeared quickly. They normally get sunflower seeds and peanuts for the ravens. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/15 "2026-01-04T19:18:59Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > birds love corn Just remember that corn is relatively nutritionally void for birds, kind of a birdy junk food. They do love it, but it’s not a complete diet for them so too much at one time can be bad. Scatter it widely to attract a greater number of birds so a few birds won’t get their fill, or scatter a little bit every couple of days. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/16 "2026-01-04T19:28:34Z")
That’s fine until the popcorn pops in the bird’s gullet. Kidding. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2026, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-storage-use-question/1026311/17 "2026-01-04T21:49:20Z")
I’ve decided to toss all the canned beans and soup, freezing the soups before putting them in the compost collector bin. The oatmeal is the Irish kind so it’s small round grains rather than rolled oats, and I tossed a few small scoopfuls out on the deck today. No takers yet, but there were bird tracks in the thin snow coating that fell overnight, so they came up there at some point before I put the oats out. I’ll be interested to see if any of the oatmeal has been taken by tomorrow morning. I could also walk off the deck and over to the retaining wall where my two suet feeders are hanging, and sprinkle some oats and cornmeal there, where I know birds and squirrels do come. I get sparrows, a downy woodpecker, sometimes a blue jay going at the suet, plus juncos picking up the crumbs that fall to the ground.