All foods
Every food that has its own page here, grouped by category and listed from A to Z. A food is listed only when its page meets our bar: at least eight facts about that food, from at least two independent publishers, with at least one of them USDA, FDA or CDC, and enough explanation written from those sources. Pages that are still below the bar stay online but are not listed. Each category starts with a short note on what its pages cover.
Dairy
Milk, butter, cheese and the other dairy foods each get their own page here, because the official numbers differ more than most people expect: some dairy foods have a stated time on the counter, some come with a time counted from the date of purchase, and some are listed as poor candidates for the freezer. Each page shows the times from USDA FoodKeeper next to the times from FDA, CDC and university extension charts, with the date we checked each source. Where two sources give different numbers, both are shown and the stricter one comes first. A cell with no official number says Not stated rather than a guess.
Meat and poultry
Raw and cooked meat and poultry are split into separate pages, because the official fridge and freezer times for a raw whole chicken, a pack of ground beef and a container of leftovers are not the same. Each page lists every state the sources cover, raw, cooked or thawed, and every place: counter, fridge at 40 °F and freezer at 0 °F. The numbers come from USDA FoodKeeper, the FDA storage chart, CDC and university extension services, each with a link and the date we checked it. Freezer times are quality times; the rules that apply to all perishable food, such as the 2-hour limit, have their own guides.
Seafood
Seafood has two pages so far: salmon, raw and smoked, and cooked shrimp, with its raw and frozen forms. Raw and cooked seafood are kept apart because the official charts give them different fridge and freezer times. Each page puts the USDA FoodKeeper entry next to the FDA guide to selecting and serving seafood safely, and next to the FDA storage chart or the University of Illinois Extension freezer chart where they cover the food; the salmon page also uses the National Center for Home Food Preservation and the NDSU Extension food storage guide. Each number shows its source and the date we checked it. When two sources give different numbers for the same cell, both are shown and the stricter one comes first. Freezer times are quality times. A cell that no official source covers says Not stated, and nothing on these pages is estimated.
Eggs
Eggs change their storage rules the moment they are cooked, separated or frozen, so each form gets its own page with the official times for that form only. The pages compare USDA FoodKeeper with the FDA, CDC and university extension sources, show which of them advise against the freezer and why, and give the date each source was checked. Nothing on these pages is estimated: if no official source gives a time for a state or a place, the cell says Not stated. General rules, such as how long cooked food may stay at room temperature, are explained once in the guides and linked from each page.
Leftovers
Leftovers are where storage advice gets most confusing, because the same cooked dish can appear under several entries in the official charts. These pages show every entry that names the food, from USDA FoodKeeper, the FDA, CDC and university extension services, side by side with their dates. When the entries give different times, both appear and the shorter one comes first, so nothing is hidden. Cooling, reheating to 165 °F and the 2-hour limit are shared rules with their own guides; the food pages link to them instead of repeating them, and keep their space for what the sources say about that food.
Produce
Fruits and vegetables are the foods where room temperature, the fridge and the freezer each mean something different, and where the official sources often add a step before freezing. Each page lists the times from USDA FoodKeeper beside university extension charts and the freezing pages of the National Center for Home Food Preservation, with the date we checked each one. Notes on preparing a vegetable for the freezer, or on how its texture changes, are quoted from the page that says so. When sources give different numbers, both appear with the stricter first, and an uncovered cell says Not stated.
Bakery
Bread, cakes and pies range from foods that sit on the counter for days to cream and pumpkin pies that the sources want refrigerated. These pages show each official number for the counter, the fridge at 40 °F and the freezer at 0 °F, taken from USDA FoodKeeper, the FDA and university extension charts, each with a link and the date we checked it. Freezer times are quality times, and some baked goods are listed as poor candidates for the freezer; the page quotes the source in its own words. A cell that no official source covers simply says Not stated.
Pantry
Pantry foods are the ones the official sources say can live at room temperature, sometimes for years. Their pages separate the two kinds of numbers the sources use: a safety statement, such as an indefinite shelf life, and a quality date, such as a best-if-used-by time. Each number links to the USDA FoodKeeper entry or the university extension page it comes from, with the date we checked it. Where a source explains what happens as a pantry food ages, for example crystals or hardening, that note is shown with its source too, so you can judge quality changes against safety.
Condiments
Sauces, pickles and spreads raise one question more than any other: does the jar need the fridge once it is open? These pages separate what the official sources say about safety from what they say about quality, because at least one extension chart notes that refrigerating some commercial condiments after opening is about quality, not safety. Each number links to the USDA FoodKeeper entry or the university extension page it comes from, with the date we checked it. When two sources give different times for the same cell, both appear and the stricter one comes first, and an uncovered cell says Not stated.
Drinks
Drinks and drink staples, from coffee to wine to plant-based milks, have pantry times before opening and fridge times after, and the official sources do not always agree on either. Each page lists every state the sources cover, unopened, opened or brewed, with the times from USDA FoodKeeper next to university extension charts and the date we checked each source. Where a source gives a quality time rather than a safety time, the page says so. Nothing is estimated: if no official source covers a cell, it says Not stated, and the shared rules, such as the 2-hour limit for perishable food, have their own guides.
Baby food and breast milk
Breast milk and baby foods follow their own official guidance, which is stricter than the general food charts in several places, such as how long milk may stay out after a feeding. These pages use CDC guidance and other official sources only, quote them where the wording matters, and show the date each source was checked. Nothing here is medical advice; the pages report what the public health sources publish for storage and handling. When a source gives a best time and an acceptable time, both are shown, and a cell that no official source covers simply says Not stated.