Is it safe...?

Question

To open a home cooked cannery(jar) of Tomatoes from 1994? YES! 1994.

We had a family member that die suddenly in summer about 2 years ago and she was a old lady that have a garden so she can CANS her food for later cooking or getting ready for winter. Always made too much...lol..
Anyway, after cleaning out her home me and my mom have some of her jars. I didn't thinks they were be THAT old but that whats the date on the jar say.
My mom want to cook it with hamburgers and a can of store brought tomatoes paste and make pasta and meatsauce.
I REFUSE to eat it if she makes it and she just laugh because I'm being a scary cat. Mom said its o.k. to eat it as long its cook.
So People I'm asking for your answers and used it as proof that I'm not a scary cat.. lol..
Good luck. :-)

Answer 1

I wouldn't take a chance. Here are some guidelines for checking for spoilage, BUT 12 years is a little too long to keep food then eat it.

Look for the following signs of spoilage in sealed jars: While holding the jar upright at eye level, rotate the jar and examine its outside surface for streaks of dried food originating at the top of the jar.
Look at the contents for rising air bubbles and unnatural color.
While opening the jar, check for spurting liquid, smell for unnatural odors and look for cotton-like mold growth (white, blue-black or green) on the top food surface an underside of lid.

Carefully discard any jar of spoiled food to prevent possible illness to you, your family, and pets. Before discarding, detoxify any jar of spoiled low-acid food by removing the jar lid, taking care not to spill the contents. Then place the jar, its contents, and the loose lid in hot water and add enough water to cover the jar. Boil all items in the water for 30 minutes. Cool and discard jar contents in the garbage.

Here are the recommended storage times for canned food:
How long will canned food keep?
Properly canned food stored in a cool, dry place will retain optimum eating quality for at least 1 year. Canned food stored in a warm place near hot pipes, a range, a furnace, or in indirect sunlight may lose some of its eating quality in a few weeks or months, depending on the temperature. Dampness may corrode cans or metal lids and cause leakage so the food will spoil.

Answer 2

Botulism is a healthy fear. It actually kills a few old ladies a year due to poor canning. Not that your family members passing was due to this.

I, being Serve-Safe certified (Federal health test) would not eat any home canned item more than 3-4 years old.

Check the seal, is the top still sucked down? Are there bubbles in the jar? If there are bubbles, is the top pushed out? How full is the jar? The more air, the more room for a bacteria or virus to live. finally, open it and smell it. If you have a bit of doubt, toss it.

Answer 3

No I wouldnt eat them there 12 yrs old .
The seal on the jar had to have given out after all those year .A can at the grocery store cost you 2 dollors , a case of food poisioning cost you hundreds why take the risk

Answer 4

I would say avoid it even though home canning has been pretty safe for many, many years. The only FDA approved home canning method now is by using a pressure canner. That jar was probably canned using the old fashioned boiling water method which has been declared as unsafe by the FDA because it does not sterilize as well as pressure canners do to prevent botulism poisoning which can be fatal. If you knew it was canned using a pressure canner I would say it is ok to eat and even though it probably still is good to eat anyway I would take a pass on this one.

Answer 5

Actually it all depends on how well sealed the jar is. Can you see anything wrong off-hand with the tomatoes? And if you know the jar wasnt sealed well then Id definatly not eat it, but other then that, if they look fine, just make sure to cook them enouph and it shouldnt be to bad :)

Answer 6

Yes, ultrasounds are safe..there are absolutely no side effects on the fetus..I had numerous ultrasounds with my 2nd pregnancy..baby was fine. I have never heard of any problems with the baby from ultrasounds...it is not like an xray so there is no radiation or anything.

Answer 7

If it's from 1994, I wouldn't eat it either. No matter how it may look or smell. It's just toooooo OLD!

Answer 8

I'm totally picky about stuff like that so I wouldnt eat it, but it may be safe. Your mom probably wouldnt lie to you if she thought it was going to actually make you sick.

Answer 9

I am with you sister. No way would I eat it. You can honor the relative in other ways.... don't endanger yourself!

Answer 10

No way...chef