Food Safety During Power Outages

Keep cool and you command everybody.- Louis de Saint-Just (1767 - 1794)
One danger easily overlooked during a power outage is food contamination. According to the USDA, Keeping Food Safe During an Emergency,

"Always keep meat, poultry, fish, and eggs refrigerated at or below 40°F and frozen food at or below 0°F." ... "The refrigerator will keep food safely cold for about 4 hours if it is unopened. A full freezer will hold the temperature for approximately 48 hours (24 hours if it is half full) if the door remains closed."

The USDA recommends keeping a thermometer in the fridge and freezer so you'll know the temperature. Because of bacteria growth, most fridge food should be thrown out if kept above 40°F for more than two hours. The USDA website has a table listing when foods are no longer safe. The site also advises what to do with canned foods after floods and fire.

The Minnesota Dept of Health is slightly more tolerant than the USDA with 4 hrs at 40°F:

Discard any potentially hazardous food that has been above 41°F for four hours or more, reached a temperature of 45°F or higher for any length of time, or has an unusual color, odor, or texture.

The following items can tolerate room temperatures for a few days and DO NOT need to be tossed out:

• Butter or margarine
• Hard and processed cheeses
• Fresh uncut fruits and vegetables, Fruit juices
• Dried fruits and coconut
• Opened jars of vinegar-based salad dressings, jelly, relish, taco sauce, barbecue sauce, mustard, ketchup, olives and peanut butter
• Fresh herbs and spices
• Fruit pies, breads, rolls, and muffins. Cakes, except cream cheese frosted or cream-filled
• Flour and nuts

Bottom Line
Perishable food such as meat, poultry, seafood, milk, and eggs that are not kept adequately refrigerated or frozen may cause illness if consumed, even when they are thoroughly cooked.