So much for the “can of beans” legend: A second round of testing what is good or not after the use-by date

In November of 2019, I checked the canned food in my emergency kit and a few other odds and ends, and reported here what was still good despite being past the use-by date, and what was not; and I replaced most of those things (MREs, emergency food bars, and water last much longer, as I’ve written about many times).  Four years later in the fall of 2023, I figured it was a good time to check on the current batch of supplies purchased in 2019, many of which had use-by dates 3 years out, so this would be another year past that.  I didn’t actually get around to it until February 2024, started writing the article, and then [insert life happening here]...  Well, here I am finishing it in November 2024.  But the information was current as of a little over 4 years from purchase.

Last time, I learned that certain canned foods don’t last well (“steam crisp” corn canned without liquid, canned Blue Diamond almonds, canned peaches in syrup, canned apricots, canned garbanzo beans) and opted to not purchase most of those for the next round.  Others lasted well, so I got more canned beets, and more canned corn in liquid, and tried a few new things.

What was still good 4 years later?

The “O Organics whole kernel corn no salt added,” like the Del Monte corn canned in water before, again was in GREAT shape, firm and delicious, despite having a use-by date of 12/21. I have been using it occasionally for cooking (southern style cast iron skillet corn, awesome!)

Signature Select sliced beets with use-by date of 11/21 were also quite good, and I snacked on them until they were used up.  They are good for a while in a snap-top container in the fridge for several days; eat one and pretend it’s a purple cookie!

What was just kind of ok?

Valley Fresh Chicken breast in water with rib meat, use-by date of 6/22, was ok but the texture was not optimal and would fall apart a little too easily.  It tasted fine though, and I used it up in salads or with added BBQ sauce (because everything tastes good with BBQ sauce).

What was not good?

Big surprise: Signature Select butter beans with date of 8/21 were mushy and I tossed them.  And here I’d always pictured that one last can of beans in the cupboard from some old story; I guess that should not be the last food left in one’s cupboard after all! 

I had been surprised last time that Blue Diamond almonds had gone bad, and was hoping it was a fluke, but the subsequent cans with a 9/21 use-by date were bad again.  The foil top under the plastic lid was puffed out (never a good sign), and they had a slightly off smell.  Ok, done with having almonds in my kit.

What was absolutely disgusting?

Signature Select cut leaf spinach (12/21), dull, slimy, yuck, had to be on the look-out for alligators in it (on the other hand, I don't know what it was like when new).

What non-food items had become useless?

Like last time, the adaptors with my device chargers were out of date; this time the problem was lack of USB-C connector.

My first aid kit had antibiotic ointment from 2015, Aleve had an expiration date of 2/21  We can safely say those need to be replaced.

For my growing number of daily prescription meds, everything there was not all that far past their expiration dates (which are totally imaginary anyway), but my current regimen was not reflected; it was a good reminder to add some of newer medications.

Speaking of meds, I had Flonase allergy nasal spray and antihistamine eye drops that I’m supposed to take every morning.  Unlike the pills, those liquid medicine solutions probably should not be kept much longer than their designated expiration dates, so I had to update them as well.

Glad I finally got this article up before the next time anything expires!  My one regret is that I neglected to photograph the almonds with the ballooned-out foil.  I hopped on the internet to search for an image of an expired can of almonds and couldn’t find anything useful, so I decided to ask ChatGPT: “Is there a photo of Blue Diamond almonds that have expired, with a puffed out foil top?” Rather than find a real photo, it generated one on the fly and I have to share it because it was hilarious (with my own disclaimer superimposed on it).  Tip: if ANY of your emergency supplies ever look like THIS, start over again!

>>back to blog