eating expired meat?

[ecet]

it is ok to eat meat(beef/chicken) after the expire date, like 2 or 3 or 4 days? cuz i dont wanna throw it out cuz it seems like a waste? or is it really unheathly?

[Keelie]

smell it. if it smells/tastes fine, its ok to eat.

[tlamm]

it is ok to eat meat(beef/chicken) after the expire date, like 2 or 3 or 4 days? cuz i dont wanna throw it out cuz it seems like a waste? or is it really unheathly?


The risk is yours. I'd toss it. You should freeze items you are not going to eat before the expiration date.

[Anessa]

did it turn colour?

[Jucius Maximus]

i have some chicken and some beef, didnt check the beef, the chicken smelled a little, both said best before oct17th, and today is the 19th
If they smell 'funny,' that is your body's defence mechanims telling you it's not safe to eat that food.

[sonick]

hmmm, save a few bucks, or get horribly ill from salmonella and e.coli and whatever other nasties are in the meat.

decisions, decisions.

[Raggie]

This is what can happen when eating spoiled meat:

http://ag.ansc.purdue.edu/meat_quality/food_borne_illness.html


But then, if you really want to eat it then go ahead.

[Anessa]

2 days shouldn't be such a big deal. More than 5 might be though.

[Siefer999]

2 days shouldn't be such a big deal. More than 5 might be though.

yea, if it still looks and smells alright, just make sure its cooked well done and it should be fine. in most situations 2 days is alright

[gamovafan]

just throw it out, you'll probably be worried at every little cough or sneeze or stomach pain, thinking "geez, could it be that bad meat I just ate".

[gh05t]

I bought some cheap schneider steakettes in August as they were $2 for four patties making up a pound.

when i started using them for burgers i realised they were quite high in fat from the drippings and so i left them while i bought presiden't choice lean burgers instead.

The best before date is the 19th of OCtober and i used some on Saturday to make spaghetti sauce and i fried it up real good before ading the rest of ingredients and have eaten it and nothing has happened.

I still have some in sealed packages that is best before 19th of October and may not use it since it was so cheap but i am guessing that once there is no odd smell and it was frozen solid all along that you can use it as the best before date surely would have given a few days extra as it is simply a safety requirement by law for meat producers to protect themselves and consumers.

Just make sure to consume it all after cooking and while hot and don't bother leaving any for the next day.

I always end up using chicken after the best before date because I buy the family packs but don't eat meat everyday but what i do is once i thaw it i prepare them in separate parcels and season it and then freeze them in glad bags and use them within a week and never had any problems even with leftovers from the chicken.

How i cook my chicken though is i cut it up in small pieces and cook it in a pot and do not bake in large chunks etc so when i cook it, it gets really cooked and there is no chance of it even being undercooked so your cooking technique may also make a difference.

It's basically your call based on your judgement after your inspection and if in doubt I would rather throw it out than risk food poisoning and costlier hospital bills than the meat would have cost.

[sterdeus]

smell it and look at it. otherwise, even if it slightly smells or looks bad, you can cook it to kill off the bacteria.

[convoluted]

If you had them frozen and are now defrosting it, it should be fine. If you had it sitting in the fridge for a week, that's more iffy...

Use your senses...! colour odor, etc. 2 days should be nothing to be worried about though.

[Amourek]

If it's ground meat, definitely throw it out.

[Spike]

Most commercial ground beef is made from expired meat (roasts, steaks, etc)

[sterdeus]

Most commercial ground beef is made from expired meat (roasts, steaks, etc)
When I used to work in the meat dept of a grocery store, we used to use scraps or ends of cuts that were cut off when making steaks, roasts, etc.

[biosh]

Beef, maybe - if it passes the smell test (after all they sell aged beef at premium prices), but chicken and pork - never!

[CodecX81]

funny how nature works sometimes.

Its also funny how you'd have to cook the meat to the point of burning it to get the bacteria out. (Even then in some cases, it still survives)

[itsmypostoffice]

the date posted is a range determined by the butcher/supermarket. if it's packaged/processed meats it's vacuum packed. generally, you don't want to risk handling expired poultry, expired meat will just taste like leathery sawdust.

food handling is more of a concern than expired meat because you can cross-contamination causing violent reactions to immune deficient individuals such as seniors & children. when in doubt throw it out -- $10 isn't worth your health.

[UrbanPoet]

if your talking about the discounted meat they sell at the grocery store a day before it 'expires' then its good as long as you freeze it if you dont eat it that day.

[trini]

Beef is aged for no more than 28 days after that it begins to rot significantly, so if the farmer or whom ever has anticipated time of slaughter to you is 28 days then you be the judge.
Game is generally hung and aged 3 days so you do the math.
Meat is inexpensive man do the safe thing.
Some people can get away with eating anything though

[CoMBo187]

it is ok to eat meat(beef/chicken) after the expire date, like 2 or 3 or 4 days? cuz i dont wanna throw it out cuz it seems like a waste? or is it really unheathly?

Please take a glance at http://www.inspection.gc.ca/

Welcome to Canada btw, over here we have guidelines for food safety. Our Food industry in Canada is regulated, I'm sure you're not used to that in your home country. But things are different here, enjoy!

[robieG]

never eat expired meat...

[cipher]

The people at my Superstore fight over expired meat every Sunday. The meat is usually gray colored...ewwwwww...

[bell02fantasy]

The people at my Superstore fight over expired meat every Sunday. The meat is usually gray colored...ewwwwww...


ok, i bought a tube of med ground beef at food basic. cost = 1.00...
I left in my car last night and today...no sunshine today in ajax....found it 2nite in the backseat.....I did the smwll test, but what can i smell through the rubber/plastic coating?? so i put it in the frrezer..should i cut my losses and throw it out..

[robieG]

ok, i bought a tube of med ground beef at food basic. cost = 1.00...
I left in my car last night and today...no sunshine today in ajax....found it 2nite in the backseat.....I did the smwll test, but what can i smell through the rubber/plastic coating?? so i put it in the frrezer..should i cut my losses and throw it out..

what were the overnight temps in your area?

[Geese_Howard]

if its completly frozen, like in a giant freezer, you have no problem.

I have a freezer with a tonne of meat, never had 1 problem. if its been in the fridge, toss it in the garbage quicker then william hungs cd.

[cipher]

ok, i bought a tube of med ground beef at food basic. cost = 1.00...
I left in my car last night and today...no sunshine today in ajax....found it 2nite in the backseat.....I did the smwll test, but what can i smell through the rubber/plastic coating?? so i put it in the frrezer..should i cut my losses and throw it out..


Since you paid $1.00 for it, I'd say eat it...

[Qyee]

Please take a glance at http://www.inspection.gc.ca/

Welcome to Canada btw, over here we have guidelines for food safety. Our Food industry in Canada is regulated, I'm sure you're not used to that in your home country. But things are different here, enjoy!


STFU!

[kingsley]

Well...don't eat it now. It's way too late.

[Steeve Urkel]

I wouldn't eat the meat.

If you end up getting food poisoning and some type of infection. You kidneys could fail. Then you would need to go on dialisis and get a kidney transplant.

That would just ruin youir life.

I know a girl who is 22 who had some kind of infection last year and her kidneys failed after she had a bad cold or something.

Now she is waiting for a kidney and has to wait 10 years as there is a shortage in Canada.

your call though

[Spare-Flair]

Just cook it. I don't know why people never realize they can cook meat, even if it's deli meat.

[thesober]

Don't you remember what happened to George Costanza's dad when he was in the Korean war? He took out his whole troop cooking bad meat. Throw it out :lol:

[BirdFlu]

I think it should be okay to eat, just cook it good :cheesygri

[coomar]

cook it good and load up the garlic and ginger on it

i had pork that was a day or two past expiry and smelt kind of funky, we washed the meat and cooked it, it was fine

[doctorgonzo]

Please take a glance at http://www.inspection.gc.ca/

Welcome to Canada btw, over here we have guidelines for food safety. Our Food industry in Canada is regulated, I'm sure you're not used to that in your home country. But things are different here, enjoy!


Lol! You consider our regulations to be safe? You ever wonder why Canadian beef had been banned by most of the EU BEFORE the mad cow crisis? It's because our food inspectors deem it safe to eat cows that have been pumped full of carcinogenic chemicals (they say it falls within safe 'parameters' - however these 'parameters' are secret and not public domain) while other nations have more common sense.

As for the e coli comment, e coli has nothing to do with the age of meat, it has to do with meat coming into contact with cow crap!! The carcasses of cows are not being properly cleaned and crap is literally being ground up with meat - that's why you have to make sure ground beef is cooked at a high enough temperature to kill off the e coli. mmm... I really could go for a burger right now! And now, the inspection agency is looking into having the packing plants nuking ground beef with gamma radiation to kill off the e coli! How safe can that be to ingest? Radioactive feces tainted beef!

[toujours]

Lol! You consider our regulations to be safe? You ever wonder why Canadian beef had been banned by most of the EU BEFORE the mad cow crisis? It's because our food inspectors deem it safe to eat cows that have been pumped full of carcinogenic chemicals (they say it falls within safe 'parameters' - however these 'parameters' are secret and not public domain) while other nations have more common sense.
Is that the hormones they inject and put in the food ? That's maybe why I heard some young men who eat a lot of chicken are growing titties when they go through puberty.


As for the e coli comment, e coli has nothing to do with the age of meat, it has to do with meat coming into contact with cow crap!! The carcasses of cows are not being properly cleaned and crap is literally being ground up with meat - that's why you have to make sure ground beef is cooked at a high enough temperature to kill off the e coli. mmm... I really could go for a burger right now! And now, the inspection agency is looking into having the packing plants nuking ground beef with gamma radiation to kill off the e coli! How safe can that be to ingest? Radioactive feces tainted beef!
And don't forget other strange stuff, like butter without an eat by date. Check it out in your store next time you shop...

And of course genetically modified crops that go into just about everything, without any indication in the ingredients and they haven't even carried out long term trials on the effects of that food. I mean, it provides no benefit whatsoever for the consumer...

Makes you want to become a organic food vegetarian...

[mlc2000]

my butcher always told me the beef marked down after a few days was actually better than the bright red stuff at regualr price, because the meat had aged.
Its no big deal when the meat turns brown, its a natural process. He told me the marked down meat should really have been marked up, because its so much more tender. Its just peoples perception of how meat is supposed to look.

Now, if the meat smells funky, don't eat it.

[sterdeus]

my butcher always told me the beef marked down after a few days was actually better than the bright red stuff at regualr price, because the meat had aged.
Its no big deal when the meat turns brown, its a natural process. He told me the marked down meat should really have been marked up, because its so much more tender. Its just peoples perception of how meat is supposed to look.

Now, if the meat smells funky, don't eat it.

Meat in the grocery store has already been aged. There are guidelines set for this but I think its usually aged 28 days before it hits the stores. So depending on your perception.. an extra few days could be "ehh.. who cares" or "it could turn bad any day now"

[felixdd]

my butcher always told me the beef marked down after a few days was actually better than the bright red stuff at regualr price, because the meat had aged.
Its no big deal when the meat turns brown, its a natural process. He told me the marked down meat should really have been marked up, because its so much more tender. Its just peoples perception of how meat is supposed to look.

Now, if the meat smells funky, don't eat it.

Your butcher BS'd you. Beef is sold pre-aged. And extra few days might mean it's past its prime aging state.

[felixdd]

Lol! You consider our regulations to be safe? You ever wonder why Canadian beef had been banned by most of the EU BEFORE the mad cow crisis? It's because our food inspectors deem it safe to eat cows that have been pumped full of carcinogenic chemicals (they say it falls within safe 'parameters' - however these 'parameters' are secret and not public domain) while other nations have more common sense.
You mean the illegal ban that the EU enforced over Canada, US, Australia, and New Zealand? The one that the WTO deemed to violate the SPS agreement? Sounds suspiciously like the current lumber crisis no?


And now, the inspection agency is looking into having the packing plants nuking ground beef with gamma radiation to kill off the e coli! How safe can that be to ingest? Radioactive feces tainted beef!
You should read up or take some courses in radiation safety (before you ask...yes...I did take such a course as I had to work with radioactive material in a lab). Exposure to radiation does not cause contamination. The only practical way you can "become radioactive" per se is if you come in direct contact with radioactive substance, some of which must rub off and stick to you.

Of course...the other way is to use a particle accelerator. But they're using gamma radiation -- which is basically light. They are basically shining a flashlight on your beef, nothing more. You know where a variant of this method is used? In laboratories around the world -- they use a UV lamp to "bathe" workbenches and help sterilize the surface.

[doctorgonzo]

You mean the illegal ban that the EU enforced over Canada, US, Australia, and New Zealand? The one that the WTO deemed to violate the SPS agreement? Sounds suspiciously like the current lumber crisis no?


You should read up or take some courses in radiation safety (before you ask...yes...I did take such a course as I had to work with radioactive material in a lab). Exposure to radiation does not cause contamination. The only practical way you can "become radioactive" per se is if you come in direct contact with radioactive substance, some of which must rub off and stick to you.

Of course...the other way is to use a particle accelerator. But they're using gamma radiation -- which is basically light. They are basically shining a flashlight on your beef, nothing more. You know where a variant of this method is used? In laboratories around the world -- they use a UV lamp to "bathe" workbenches and help sterilize the surface.

Omg, the WTO? Do you know anything about the WTO? WTO has never been inclined to make any policy decisions based on public safety.

Gamma radiation is a lot more harmful than just a flashlight buddy... if you think otherwise than I pity the poor souls who work in the same lab as you.

Using gamma radiation to sterilize surfaces and to kill bacteria from fecal matter IN food is totally different. The food is eventually going to be ingested - and there are NO long term studies that have been done on the effects of eating food that has been sterilized by gamma radiation. The concern is not of the radiation but of the chemical changes that occur at the molecular level in the food that has been subjected to this radiation. You misunderstood my jest at the end of my post where I wrote 'radioactive feces infected meat' - it was meant as a joke, not as an implication of concern of the radioactivity of the meat after sterilization. The joke being 'why the hell don't they just properly process the meat so that there is NO fecal matter contaminating meat rather than a patch job trying to fix a mistake?' But I digress, that is the North American perspective of conflict resolution - a prohibitive approach rather than a more sane preventative approach.

[felixdd]

You misunderstood my jest at the end of my post where I wrote 'radioactive feces infected meat' - it was meant as a joke, not as an implication of concern of the radioactivity of the meat after sterilization.

Yes that totally got lost in translation. A smiley would help ;)

[doubloonie]

Just DON'T DO IT! Ick. :eek: