Storing frozen food
Using storage temperatures on packed food.
When food is frozen it is kept at a negative temperature. We keep food cold, chilled or frozen because it keeps it for longer. But it makes a big difference what temperature we store it at.
When you buy food that you want to put in the freezer you have to read the storage instructions. These tell you what temperatures to store the food at. The colder your freezer, the longer you can store the food for. They show negative numbers and * symbols which mean different temperatures.
Have a look at these storage instructions from a bag of frozen vegetables. They show that at different temperatures you can store the food for different lengths of time:
| Food freezer | Until best before date (at -18°C)* * * |
| Star Marked Frozen Food Compartment | Until best before date (at -18°C)* * * |
| | 1 month at (-12°C)* * |
| | 1 week at (-6°C)* |
| Ice Making Compartment | 3 days at (-6°C)* |
| Refrigerator | 24 hours (at 5°C) |
| No cold storage | Eat on day of purchase if not kept frozen. |
Star ratings
On the bag for the vegetables * symbols were used beside temperatures. Many freezers have these star ratings. The stars mean the freezer, of parts of the freezer, is at a certain temperature.
| Number of stars | Temperature | Degrees below freezing |
| 4 * * * * | -18°C | 18 degrees below freezing
Suitable for long term storage |
| 3 * * * | -18°C | 18 degrees below freezing |
| 2 * * | -12°C | 12 degrees below freezing |
| 1 * | -6°C | 6 degrees below freezing |
| none, a fridge | 5°C | 5 degrees above freezing |
