Freezer warmed to -6C. Safe to eat the food?
My freezer recently warmed to -6 degrees Centigrade during a long power outage from its usual -18C. It's now on its super freeze cycle and cooling back down again. Is the food inside still safe to eat? -6 is obviously less than zero, the freezing point of water, but I've heard that food in a freezer can go bad even below 0. Is this true?
Best Answer
In your question, does "go bad" mean food quality or food safety?
As for safety, you were nowhere near the "danger zone" either temperature-wise or time-wise.
Initially safe, properly stored, frozen food that warms to -6C (or 22 F) for 30 minutes will not render it unsafe to eat.
In terms of food quality, freezers (most of which these days are self-defrosting), go through temperature cycles regularly. The problem with this is not food safety, but the accumulation of ice crystals in foods, which degrades quality. Freezer burn is the extreme example. Of course, attention to packaging (vacuum sealing, for example) helps.
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Is it safe to eat frozen food that has thawed and refrozen?
Partial thawing and refreezing may reduce the quality of some food, but the food will remain safe to eat.Is freezer burned food safe to eat?
Meat and other foods with freezer burn are still safe to eat. Freezer burn draws out moisture and flavor. This affects the quality. but not the safety of food.At what temperature does freezer food go bad?
If the freezer is above 40 degrees F and you know it has been at that temperature more than two hours, then the food probably is not safe. Fruits and bread products are exceptions. Fruits ferment when they start to spoil, but a little fermentation won't make fruits unsafe to eat.Can freezer burn make you sick?
Although it might not be super appealing \u2014 and the texture or taste might not be up to your standards \u2014 things that have freezer burn are 100 percent safe to eat. According to the USDA, eating freezer burn does not put you at risk for any food-borne illness or issues.Can You Refrigerate Cooked Food? | Hot Food In The Fridge?
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