Frequently asked questions

Shelf-life is the length of time a food product remains safe to eat and keeps its expected quality, such as taste, texture, and appearance. It tells you how long packaged or perishable foods like meat or dairy can be stored before their safety or freshness declines.

Manufacturers determine a product’s shelf-life through testing under controlled temperature and storage conditions, ensuring it meets food safety standards and regulations. That’s why you see dates on food labels, they serve as a guide for both retailers and consumers to make the right purchasing and storage decisions.

Factors such as the type of food, its packaging, storage conditions (like refrigeration), and whether it’s perishable or not, all influence how long a product lasts. By extending shelf-life through better packaging or natural ingredients, manufacturers can reduce food waste, improve sales, and ensure consumers enjoy the freshest items possible.

The shelf-life of packaged food depends on four main factors:

1. Food composition – Moisture content, nutrients, and sensitivity to oxidation directly impact stability.

2. Packaging – The right material and technologies like modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) protect against oxygen, air, and microbial growth.

3. Storage conditions – Controlled temperatures, humidity, and protection from light are key to maintaining food safety.

4. Processing & formulation – Clean production and functional ingredients help extend shelf-life without compromising quality.

👉 Together, these factors ensure that perishable food products remain safe, fresh, and consistent for both manufacturers and consumers.

Preservatives help to extend shelf-life by slowing microbial growth (bacteria, yeasts, and molds) and preventing spoilage or contamination. They contribute to both safety and quality, ensuring products remain safe and stable throughout distribution.

There are different types of preservatives:

• Natural (e.g., acids and antioxidants extracted from fruits or natural sources)

• Synthetic preservatives (such as sodium benzoate)

Both varieties play a role in reducing waste, protecting against harmful microorganisms, and maintaining desired product properties like taste and texture.

For manufacturers, choosing the right ingredient—whether natural or synthetic—requires balancing regulatory compliance, consumer preferences, and the need to extend shelf-life efficiently.

Not necessarily. In the food industry, extending shelf-life is not about keeping products artificially “alive” but about ensuring food safety and maintaining desired quality under the right conditions.

With the use of advanced packaging materials, functional ingredients, and controlled storage environments, perishable food products can remain fresh, safe, and appealing without reducing quality. For example, reducing oxygen exposure or controlling moisture levels can slow the growth of microorganisms while protecting taste and texture.

For manufacturers, the real advantage of extending product shelf-life lies in reducing food waste, improving logistics, and delivering consistent quality to consumers. When supported by innovative technologies and clean-label solutions, extending shelf-life becomes a way to protect both products and brand reputation.

Determining the shelf-life of food requires shelf-life testing that evaluates how products behave under different storage conditions. Two main approaches are used: real-time testing, where products are stored under normal conditions to observe the product’s quality evolution over time, and accelerated testing, where higher temperatures or stress factors are applied to simulate aging and predict stability faster.

For food manufacturers, combining these methods ensures compliance with safety standards, reliable data for labeling, and insights to optimize packaging and formulations. This process is key to guaranteeing that shelf-life food products remain safe, high-quality, and consistent throughout their intended market life.

Calculating shelf-life is a scientific process, not just a simple calculator. It requires shelf-life testing where products are stored under controlled temperatures and storage conditions to monitor changes in quality, safety, and stability over time. Both real-time studies and accelerated tests are used to determine the total shelf-life of food products.

For manufacturers, accurate results depend on multiple factors: ingredients, packaging materials, production processes, and exposure to light, oxygen, or moisture. While a shelf-life calculator or software can support inventory management by tracking expiry dates, only proper testing in a lab or through specialized services ensures compliance with industry standards and reliable food safety.