Should I Eat That? Food Safety with the Wolfram Language

This is an excerpt from a post written by Isabel Skidmore that was published on the Wolfram Blog. While it was originally shared during Food Safety Education Month, food safety is important year-round! The full post can be viewed here.

Foodborne illness, or food poisoning, is something many of us have experienced. According to the World Health Organization, almost 1 in 10 people in the world fall ill each year after eating contaminated food. Luckily, by following recommended food safety practices, we can do our best to avoid getting sick.

September is Food Safety Education Month. To highlight the importance of food safety, we have introduced two new properties in Wolfram Language that can help users make smart choices about food storage:

“I Bought Ground Beef on Tuesday for a Family Cookout on Saturday. Can I Keep the Ground Beef in the Refrigerator until Then?”

Let’s use this new property in Wolfram Language to check:

Based on the data, sourced from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), you should keep raw ground beef a maximum of two days in the refrigerator before it is cooked. In this case, it’s best to go ahead and freeze the ground beef the day you bought it. You also can query the Wolfram Language for how long the ground beef can be kept in the freezer before use:

We can use TimelinePlot to check the maximum refrigerated and frozen storage times for a variety of raw and cooked meats:

“I Shop at My Favorite Fish Market Once a Month. How Long Can I Keep the Fish in the Freezer?”

You can check maximum frozen storage times for a wide range of raw fish and seafood, including these examples:

Did you notice the shorter frozen storage times for fish with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon and mackerel? See the comparison with other fish like halibut and snapper:

“It’s Lunchtime on Monday. I Have Leftover Pizza in the Fridge from Friday Night. Should I Eat That?”

You can get answers about popular leftovers, including your Friday-night pizza delivery. Since it’s been only three days (and assuming the leftover pizza was stored in the refrigerator within two hours), you can go ahead and enjoy it for Monday’s lunch:

As you can see, most cooked leftovers that are refrigerated promptly can be stored three to four days.

Hungry for more? Check out the original post here to read about turkey storage, farm fresh produce and more!