Food Safety Fridge And Freezer Temps

Freezer burn is a food quality issue not a food safety issue.

Food safety fridge and freezer temps.

Wrap tightly foods destined for the freezer. It s vital to keep your freezer at a cold temperature as it stops bacteria from growing. The first rule of food storage in the home is to refrigerate or freeze perishables right away. Check both fridge and freezer periodically with a refrigerator freezer thermometer.

A full freezer will hold a safe temperature for approximately 48 hours 24 hours if it is half full and the door remains closed. A refrigerator thermometer may also be used to measure the freezer temperature which should be 0 f or 18 c. The short time limits for home refrigerated foods will help keep them from spoiling or becoming dangerous to eat. While food safety law doesn t specifically state the required temperature of freezers industry best practice is 18 ºc or lower.

A freezer acts as a pause button food in a freezer won t deteriorate and most bacteria cannot grow in it. It also ensures that every part of the fridge remains at an acceptable temperature. Adjust the freezer settings as necessary to get the temperature in a safe range after making adjustments to either the freezer or refrigerator check the thermometer s temperature readout after five hours repeating the adjustment process until the reading is in the ideal range. This will make room for the items that do need to be chilled for safety reasons such as raw ready to eat and cooked food.

At 5 c or colder and at freezing temperatures many bacteria that cause food poisoning and food spoilage either don t grow or their growth may be slowed down. The guidelines for freezer storage are for quality only frozen foods stored continuously at 0 f or below can be kept indefinitely. Use this chart as a general guide. The perfect temperature range for a freezer is at or slightly below 0 f and never more than 2 f.

Follow the guidelines below for storing food in the refrigerator and freezer. In addition to keeping the temperature in your fridge at 40 f you can take additional steps to make sure your refrigerated foods stay as safe as. The refrigerator temperature should be 40 fahrenheit and the freezer should be 0 f. Never taste food to determine its safety.

If your fridge is looking full take out items that don t need to be chilled such as beer. Where to store food in your fridge different parts of the refrigerator run a little. Food may be safely refrozen if it still contains ice crystals or is at 40 f or below however its quality may suffer.