The Answers

Given it is impossible to tell from the packaging what needs to be refrigerated AND why, this blog comes into existence. For whatever reason, I've always pondered these questions. Perhaps partly because I like food, a part of the scientist in me, and an over crowded fridge, I've decided to blog about it. I want to go through a vast array of foods and determine what, why, and for how long. I will use information from government websites, product sites, encyclopedias, and anywhere else I can find. When possible I will cite my sources. I will also try to debunk certain myths. Most importantly, I will educate myself and whoever in this world has similar questions. Let's get started.

Two Reasons

There are two main reasons to refrigerate something. To prolong freshness and to prolong flavor.

Freshness
Nothing can prevent something from spoiling that can spoil. So, the most the refrigerator can do is slow down the process of spoilage so the product lasts much longer. A steak will go bad in hours on a counter top. But will last for days in a refrigerator. This is what we typically think about what a refrigerator does and why we put stuff in it. But that's only one reason.

Flavor
Another reason is to prolong flavor. Besides by spoiling, some foods just lose their flavor if left out in the open. The refrigerator slows this flavor loss. It can prolong flavor by months or years.

Some foods that never spoil will lose their flavor. This is the surprising part. Many foods will last forever in an open container on the shelf in your pantry. They would just taste horrible over time. In fact, many of the "Refrigerate After Opening" warnings are for flavor reasons only.

The Question

It starts innocently enough. You crack open a jar of something from the pantry. You use a bit of it. You go to put it back on the shelf when you ask, "Should I put this in the refrigerator?" You do the bottle roll in your hand to see those prophetic words "Refrigerate After Opening". You look on the label. Then the cap. The the bottom. It doesn't say it. So you put it back on the shelf. But, in the back of your mind you're wondering, "Why wouldn't it need refrigerating? What if I missed it? What if they're wrong?!" So, you go grab it and put it in the fridge.

After a while you may have the opposite question. Why does this need refrigerating? Nothing in the universe can live in a bottle of soy sauce due to the salt. So, why does it tell you to refrigerate it? It can't possibly go bad! You've kept it on your pantry shelf for years and never gotten sick. Are you just lucky?