5 Myths About Freezing Food To Ignore

There’s often a lot of misinformation and confusion surrounding what you can and cannot store in your freezer, and when you should consume foods that have been frozen and defrosted.

The Food Standards Agency in the United Kingdom has released new research that identifies a number of common freezing myths that prevent people from using their freezers to make food go further.

Some 43% of those who were interviewed for the study said that they thought food should only be frozen on the day of purchase to be safe, another 38% incorrectly said they think it’s dangerous to refreeze meat after it’s been cooked, and 36% wrongly believe food becomes unsafe to eat while it is in the freezer.

The research also found that 90% of people said there are foods they would never freeze – this included 23% who said they would never freeze meat that had been cooked after defrosting with 73% of people saying this was because of fears of food poisoning.

More than two thirds (68%) of people surveyed had thrown away food in the past month. Bread (36%), fruit (31%), vegetables (31%) and leftover meals (22%) were the most common food items that were turfed.

The most common reason (36%) given for chucking food out was that it had gone past its use by date. Another 30% said they threw food away because they had bought too much and didn’t eat it. And more than half (54%) say they feel guilty when they throw food away.

Here in Australia, it’s estimated that we discard up to 20% of the food we purchase, costing an average of $1036 per household per year. Much of this wastage can be avoided by making better use of the freezer.

According to Steve Wearne, Director of Policy at the FSA, the research shows that many of the fears people have about freezing their food are unfounded.

“The freezer is like a pause button, so you can freeze foods right up to the ‘use by’ date. While food is kept safe in the freezer, it’s the quality that deteriorates over time, so we recommend eating it within three to six months and checking for any freezing instructions on the packaging. Once defrosted, the pause button is off, so defrost food as and when you need it and eat it within 24 hours of it being fully defrosted,” he said.

Here’s some of the biggest myths around food freezing the FSA has debunked:

1. Food needs to be eaten within three months of freezing it

This isn’t correct. Lots of foods have recommendations that they need to be eaten within three months of freezing, but this is usually because the food can deteriorate in the freezer and has to do with preservation of flavour and little to do with food safety. The FSA says most foods can be preserved for years.

2. You can only freeze certain foods