How to make milk last longer

Have you ever accidentally made a cup of tea with spoilt milk? Such are the surprises of fresh dairy. Milk has been a staple in our kitchens since time immemorial, but unfortunately, it comes with an expiration date. We have all been cautious enough to look at the ‘best by' date before making a purchase, but that’s not what your bottle of milk is telling you, and chances are you have been discarding it way too soon.

At Gulf News Food, we discovered that milk lasts quite a few days past its printed date if kept in the refrigerator. If the milk bottle is unopened, it lasts longer depending on the milk you consume. Moreover, there is also a way to increase the shelf life of your milk, but we will get to that a little later.

How long does milk last?

Based on the type of milk, we charted out how long milk lasts past its printed expiration date.

The freshness of milk solely depends on how you store it. Refrigerating it could extend its shelf life, but letting it sit could result in a foul taste and odour. Bottled milk is pasteurised, which means it goes through a certain level of heat (between 145 to 160F) to eliminate the presence of bacteria.

When a tetra pack or a bottle of milk is opened, it is exposed to bacteria in the air, which is why it spoils quickly. Therefore, if you let your bottle sit out at a temperature above 45F or 7C, chances are you are providing a haven for bacteria, and you reduce shelf life by a day. Refrigerating milk, once opened, will slow down the bacteria build-up process.

Checking the label

There is a vast difference between the ‘sell by’, ‘use by’, ‘best if used by’, and ‘expires on’ labels. According to healthyeating.org, “there is no uniform phrasing applied to products that have a use-by date, though these four phrases are used most frequently”.

• The ‘best if used by/before’ label indicates when a product will be of best flavour or quality and is not a purchase or safety date.

• The ‘sell by’ tag is for the milk store. It tells how long the store can display the carton or bottle of milk at the store for sale. This is part of inventory management and is not a safety date.

• The ‘use by’ label is the last recommended date for the use of the product while at peak quality. Although there are exceptions such as when used as a label on formula for infants, it is not a safety date.

• The ‘freeze by’ label tells the consumer when to freeze the milk to maintain peak quality. It is not a purchase or safety date.

Opened milk bottles also have a specific location to be placed. For example, if you place milk at the front of your fridge’s rack or against the door’s rack, it will be exposed to bacteria every time you open it. So, it is best recommended that you keep the milk at the farthest end of the refrigerator, at a temperature of 38 to 40F (3 to 4C) in the same container it came in.

Increasing the lifespan of milk

When it comes to milk, there are many hacks to increase its shelf life. However, these two ways seem to be doing the trick:

Freeze it

Did you know? Milk expands when frozen, so make sure that you store it in a container that has ample space. Once frozen, the milk can be thawed in the refrigerator or in cold water, making it safe for consumption. Ideally, milk should only be frozen for three to six months. Anything beyond that could mean trouble.

Add a little salt

Yes, that’s right. Open your milk, add a pinch of salt, shake vigorously, and keep it in the refrigerator. Adding salt slows down the souring process of milk, giving you an additional day or two. Curious to know the science behind it? Adding salt draws water molecules out, thus lowering the water product activity and bacterial growth.