# Need help with this...prefferably soon **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 15, 2000, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633 "2000-07-15T03:26:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![zebbmx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/958977/32.png) [@zebbmx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zebbmx)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/1 "2000-07-15T03:26:19Z")
hello i was just wondering if frozen foods can “get old” or bad i mean not just after a short while im talking like years of being in a freezer…i have a huge bag of frozen french fries in my freezer that have been opened already and theyve been there for a bout a year and i realize that frozen foods SHOULDNT be bad because well…theyre frozen…oh well ill shut up before i sound any stupider. ---
**Author:** ![Booker57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Booker57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Booker57)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/2 "2000-07-15T03:30:35Z")
All food wil go “bad”. Freezing sloes down but does not stop decay. Please be on the safe side, ditch the fries.MTS ---
**Author:** ![jamshid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecd19e/32.png) [@jamshid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jamshid)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/3 "2000-07-15T04:03:59Z")
Let’s see, a new bag of fries would cost what–two or three bucks, tops? Anybody have the latest figures on a trip to the ER? ---
**Author:** ![Minxsmom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d07c76/32.png) [@Minxsmom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Minxsmom)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/4 "2000-07-15T05:03:21Z")
Even if you avoided getting sick they would taste _nasty_. Take my word for it, been there, done that. ---
**Author:** ![Mamapotomus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/94ad74/32.png) [@Mamapotomus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mamapotomus)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/5 "2000-07-15T05:09:36Z")
It’s called freezerburn. It makes food taste so bad that I can only imagine feces would be an improvement. Frozen foods are good about 3 months, tops. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/6 "2000-07-15T14:05:17Z")
Oh come on people, every bag of food has a date on it to let you know how long its safe to eat. Look at the date. ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/7 "2000-07-15T22:08:35Z")
What about frozen meat products? In the back of the freezer, I found some cube steak that is dated a little over a year ago. It’s still in the store’s stryofoam and plastic package. It’s been frozen solid this whole time. Think it’s okay? I’m looking for tonight’s supper. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/8 "2000-07-15T23:11:02Z")
Six months for steaks, but ground and cubed beef had much greater exposure to air in the store per cubic whatever, so it has a much shorter freezer life. Meat that was not double wrapped and completely sealed will look pretty bad after a stay in the freezer, though it may still be safe to eat. Note that I’m not the USDA, and you might want to ask them. ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2000, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/9 "2000-07-15T23:50:54Z")
OK, this might sound like a trailer for _Lifestyles of the Bleak and Dreary_, but I’ve got some Ling and Kingfish in my freezer that I caught in 1989. They were frozen in solid blocks of ice and have had _no_ exposure to air. What do y’all think? No, I’m not going to find out tonight. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2000, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-with-this-prefferably-soon/25633/10 "2000-07-16T00:46:36Z")
**beatle** said > [@](#): > > OK, this might sound like a trailer for Lifestyles of the Bleak and Dreary, but I’ve got some Ling and Kingfish in my freezer that I caught in 1989. You’ll have to go some to beat a guy I read about in Norther Ohio recently who had some specie of Lake Erie Fish which hasn’t been seen in 35+ years. He had one in his freezer that he caught back in the 50’s I think and they were gonna do a DNA test on it for some reason. I am terrible about details. Perhaps **tomndebb** can supply a better story.