Food Safety Fridge And Freezer Temperatures

A refrigerator thermometer may also be used to measure the freezer temperature which should be 0 f or 18 c.

Food safety fridge and freezer temperatures.

At 5 c or colder and at freezing temperatures many bacteria that cause food poisoning and food spoilage either don t grow or their growth may be slowed down. Keep your appliances at the proper temperatures. Follow the guidelines below for storing food in the refrigerator and freezer. Maintaining the ideal fridge and freezer temperature is important.

Use an appliance thermometer to be sure the temperature is consistently 40 f or below and the freezer temperature is 0 f or below. Adjust the freezer settings as necessary to get the temperature in a safe range after making adjustments to either the freezer or refrigerator check the thermometer s temperature readout after five hours repeating the adjustment process until the reading is in the ideal range. The perfect temperature range for a freezer is at or slightly below 0 f and never more than 2 f. There are very specific rules regarding the temperatures that food must be stored at cooked to and reheated to and if not followed the risk of becoming ill as a result of contamination increases.

The bottom line on fridge freezer temperatures. These occur when the food is not sealed properly causing dry spots on food. Storing perishable foods and food ingredients in the fridge or freezer is primarily to prevent food poisoning or to slow down spoilage and loss of food quality. Also when putting food away don t crowd the refrigerator or freezer so tightly that air can t circulate.

It can also be caused from too cold temperature settings in the freezer. The guidelines for freezer storage are for quality only frozen foods stored continuously at 0 f or below can be kept indefinitely. Don t overfill your fridge. Keep the refrigerator temperature at or.

Leaving space allows air to circulate and maintains the set temperature. Food could cause the. The typical freezer factory setting on whirlpool refrigerators is a great starting point at the recommended 0 f 18 c. If your fridge is looking full take out items that don t need to be chilled such as beer.

Fridge at a safe temperature. Food storage refers to food which is kept it the fridge freezer pantry or in some instances a warming receptacle.