In This ArticleView AllIn This ArticleBloating from the Packaging MethodBloating from SpoilageThe Bottom Line
In This ArticleView All
View All
In This Article
Bloating from the Packaging Method
Bloating from Spoilage
The Bottom Line
I wondered if the food inside of puffy packaging was safe to eat after I saw a TikTok video from Maneet Kaur, a food product developer in England. Kaur says in the video, “Both of these products are in date, but this one pack has blown and that basically means that the film is spongy to touch … That means there is bacteria inside this pack of food now, even though the packaging says it is in date, it is not safe to eat.”
To see if this was true, I asked Meredith Carothers, a food safety expert with theU.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.
Carothers says that bloating of meat or poultry packages can happen for various reasons—and not all of them pose a risk. She says, “For example, some meats or poultry are packaged in ‘MAP,’ ormodified atmosphere packaging.”
Carothers explains that MAP is a packaging method in which a combination of gases is introduced into the package during processing, and it can add a little bloating or swelling to things likemeat,seafood,salad mixesorcheese. In this case, there’s likely nothing to worry about. “The purpose of these approved, inert gases is to extend shelf life of the product,” Carothers adds.
Getty Images / John E. Kelly
Carothers says it’s not worth risking potentially getting sick. She says, “We here at FSIS err on the side of caution and recommend when observing swollen, puffy packages, it’s best to not use, as they are potentially spoiled and therefore risky or unsafe.”
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