Salt - An observation!

I don’t think that you will come to any harm using salt that is past its sell by date!

ATB from George

Unless you use it on a motorway, whilst walking and wearing a blindfold.  Then it's probably quite dangerous

It was protected in the mine for many million years and now is in a carton exposed to who knows what and the packer do not want to assume the liability for a longer term.

Regards.  Erich

Probably only 80 - 90 odd % real salt, with added nitrates ,dyes , and other additives to bulk up content and/ or give an attractive appearance and flavour since a lot of big brand    Salt sellers have had to lower sodium levels by law - from dubious processes that are probably more harmful than having eating unrefined and unprocessed high sodium sea salts.....a bit like sugar.

If the salt was iodized it would have a shelf life of around five years. Iodide is reactive with oxygen in the air and over time you lose its nutritional benefits.

Seeing as salt is a preservative too it seems extra strange. Are they worried about the natural radioactive decay of sodium and chlorine into other isotopes?

Just found the same thing on jars of honey. Okay yeah more impurities than salt but still honey. It had a use by date of 1 year. We bought in bulk 30Kgs of honey a few years ago for a laugh and am still eating it. So far no ill effects.

In the UK, by law, all products for consumption have to have a Best Before date. Another unusual example is vinegar.

Steve J posted:

In the UK, by law, all products for consumption have to have a Best Before date. Another unusual example is vinegar.

I might have thought this about vinegar too, but I've noticed that it does deteriorate and develops a kind of murky sediment over time, especially in wine vinegar. Salt, though - I would certainly ignore the date on it.

Fare comments, thank you , but it just made me smile that salt is or was used as a preservative to extend the edible life of some foods, particularly meat and fish.

At least we've mostly moved to 'Best Before' as opposed to 'Use By' dates on packaging.

We generally ignore them all at home.

Re. Best before and use by dates; As ever, use your nose and best judgement.  Something I completely ignored last night when I went to cook some scallops.  They were within their "best before" date (just) but in my haste I didn't give them a close up smell.  A mistake.  They had the distinct taste of ammonia to them. They all went straight in the bin.  Well, all bar the one and a half that i had eaten. So I spent the rest of the evening waiting for the time bomb to go off.  Good news - It's morning and I'm still alive...

Nutmeg and honey (a natural antibiotic) never go off.

Wine does not need a best-before date*, despite falling under the jurisdiction of foodstuff legislation (although beer does - something about which the Germans were very upset), but neither need ingredients labelling because the Germans DID see to that.

(Wine packaged in plastic or aluminium - bag-in-box etc - will have dates because the seals fail eventually, although you're usually completely safe until it starts leaking, and even then it can do no harm.)

And what about water.  One year expire date although sealed.  Is it because of the plastic of the bottle or the poor sealing?

natural spring water, unlike mineral water, is not sterile. One of the reasons it has a use by date of under 2 years and should never be used to make ice.

Petroetheltetraphenalene (plastic bottles) do break down eventually and leech truly hazardous levels of dioxins.

Thanks!

Gianluigi Mazzorana posted:

And what about water.  One year expire date although sealed.  Is it because of the plastic of the bottle or the poor sealing?

Yes, plastic bottles can leech nasties into the water surprisingly quickly.  Heat will do it fast - ever left a plastic bottle of water in the car for a few weeks then opened it? Very nasty. It makes you wonder about plastic bottled water stored in hot places...

Richard Dane posted:

... Good news - It's morning and I'm still alive...

I notice no-one else has yet spotted the good news, let me be the first to congratulate you! Now lay off the salmon mousse ...

Richard Dane posted:

Gianluigi Mazzorana posted:

And what about water.  One year expire date although sealed.  Is it because of the plastic of the bottle or the poor sealing?

Yes, plastic bottles can leech nasties into the water surprisingly quickly.  Heat will do it fast - ever left a plastic bottle of water in the car for a few weeks then opened it? Very nasty. It makes you wonder about plastic bottled water stored in hot places...

Indeed i was even thinking about all those trucks in a queue on motorways under august sun.....

Good old glass....

Bruce Woodhouse posted:

At least we've mostly moved to 'Best Before' as opposed to 'Use By' dates on packaging.

We generally ignore them all at home.

+1 Eyes and nose are the best judges of freshness. With regard to fresh food we tend to buy our meat, fish, fruit and vegetables from independent shops and the market where there is no problem with Use By or Best Before dates. Shopping this way usually ensures freshness if you know what to look for and, as I shop at the same fishmongers, butchers etc, I have developed a good relationship with them which means they won't sell me anything second rate.

I would never buy fish at a supermarket in the UK. The quality is generally very poor and I'm very jealous of those countries in Europe like Spain and Portugal where the fish counters in the supermarkets are generally of very high quality.  

Generally a good mantra is 'if it looks off and smells off it is off'. 

A friend of mine was sold a turkey crown on Dec 23rd, approx 08:45 that he has now found out is dated Use By Dec 21st! 

Steve J posted:

......I shop at the same fishmongers, butchers etc, I have developed a good relationship with them which means they won't sell me anything second rate.

 

But if I walked in they'd sell me rubbish? That doesn't seem very fair.

Gianluigi Mazzorana posted:

And what about water.  One year expire date although sealed.  Is it because of the plastic of the bottle or the poor sealing?

When you product test food it includes the packaging so it will be because of the chances of the plastic breaking down. Usually Labs will send you back a letter advising you even though the product may have shelf life longer than a year because of the plastic bottle they recommend a shelf life of a maximum of a year. Marks & Spencers invented the Best Before labelling to encourage you to buy more product.

Eating shi... Drinking shi.....