Navigating Food Spoilage During Power Outage

Extended power outages can cause concern for frozen and refrigerated food in the home.

Putnam County UT-Ag Extension Director Michelle Parrott said even with the doors closed, a fridge will only hold its temperature for four hours. However, Parrott said a full freezer will last 48 hours.

She said food getting between 40 and 140 degrees is known as the danger zone.

“We don’t want you to taste the food to see if it’s safe,” Parrott said. “Because if it were to be spoiled at that point, we don’t want you to get sick. So, we don’t want you to taste that food. Smelling that’s okay, but basically the old saying when in doubt, throw it out because it’s not worth it.”

Parrott said that raw meat, cooked meat and cream based items will be spoiled if over 40 degrees for two hours. She said freezer items will be safe to consume if they are still covered in ice crystals.

“If they do not have any ice crystals on them, you do have to be careful and really consume them quickly,” Parrott said. “If you do have power restored, because you don’t want to let those sit.”

Parrott said if anyone has a cooler, they can put items inside and keep it outdoors to try and maintain proper temperature. However, she said putting items directly in the snow is not a good idea.

“Referencing people that maybe just put things in a plastic bag and put them out in the snow thinking it will keep them cold enough,” Parrott said. “That may be true but we really don’t know the true ground temperature sometimes and even if the Sun peeks through the clouds a little bit. It can quickly heat up those food items and that’s why it’s not recommended.”

Parrott said that outages stress the importance of thermometers that are not powered by electricity. As well as canned and dried goods.