There are foods that can last almost forever and never spoil. These foods have not been tested to determine the exact amount of time it will take before they expire, so there is no official expiration date. Many people assume these foods must be unhealthy but this is just a myth. In fact, some foods without expiration dates may contain preservatives that help preserve them and keep them from spoiling. In some cases foods without expiration dates contain no preservatives at all, but due to the way it is processed or prepared makes it so that you cannot grow harmful bacteria in foods without expiration dates.
These foods have gone through a special process which ensures they will never expire. Here’s a list of 10 foods with no expiration date
- Salt
Salt is not a food itself, but it can be found in foods you eat every day. Salt does not go bad and will never expire because it’s made up of sodium chloride, which has no expiration date.
- Rice
Rice does not contain any ingredients that cause it to spoil, so technically you can eat rice forever. It only starts to go bad when the outside of the grain gets damp which encourages mildew growth. This makes foods with no expiration date safe to eat as long as they are not damp or moldy.
- Sugar
Sugar does not expire because it is used as a preservative. Sugar draws moisture out of foods, just like salt does. When foods are not moist, bacteria is less likely to grow inside them because there’s no food for it to eat.
- Honey & Maple Syrup
Honey has been used as a food preservative for thousands of years and has therefore never needed an expiration date. Also, foods with no expiration date like honey and maple syrup are never exposed to air which prevents the growth of mold or bacteria inside them.
- White Rice Vinegar
White rice vinegar does not contain any ingredients that cause it to spoil so technically you can eat white rice vinegar forever. In fact, white rice vinegar’s only expiration date is when the taste and smell of it does not match up to its quality. If vinegar smells or tastes off, it is no longer safe to eat.
- Dried Beans
Dried beans also do not contain any ingredients that cause them to spoil so technically you can eat dried beans forever as well. Dried beans can be stored almost indefinitely as long as they are not exposed to moisture. Beans that have been properly dried and stored away from sunlight will never spoil.
- Pure Maple Syrup
Pure maple syrup is the only form of maple syrup that needs a chemical analysis written on it because pure maple syrup does contain ingredients that cause foods to spoil. However, foods with no expiration date like pure maple syrup can last almost forever as long as they are stored away from moisture and air.
- Salt Pork
Salt pork is also called salt beef and has been a popular food for hundreds of years because it only needs to be protected from the air and doesn’t need to be refrigerated. Salt pork was even used as a survival food by soldiers because it could last for an extremely long time without going bad.
- Pure Vanilla Extract
Pure vanilla extract is another foods with no expiration date because foods like pure vanilla extract do not contain any ingredients that cause them to spoil and can therefore last forever if they are stored away from moisture and air.
- Corn Starch
Corn starch foods with no expiration date because foods like corn starch do not contain any ingredients that cause them to spoil and can therefore last forever if they are stored away from moisture and air.
If you have these foods at home don’t throw them out because they’re foods with no expiration date. The foods you should really start thinking about throwing out are foods like yogurt, sour cream, and buttermilk foods that expire quickly because they already contain bacteria that cause foods to spoil.