How to Best Store Your Bulk Grocery Items

With covid-19 numbers rising again, and many areas being forced back into quarantine, many consumers have resorted to buying in bulk. However, the one problem that arises with this is where and how to store all the extra perishable (and even non-perishable) products in your home – especially in light of possible pest infestations and food going bad before you have time to use it. Here are a few tips on how to handle your surplus.

Fruit and Vegetables

Vegetables and many types of fruits are perfect to store in dark and cool places, and do not need to take up space in your kitchen. If you are fortunate enough to have a cellar, basement, or even a dark and cool workshop, garage or attic, these are the ideal spaces to place potatoes, carrots, pumpkins, apples, pears, onions and garlic.

Of course, fruits such as bananas, pineapples and mango can be placed in the freezer and used for delicious smoothies later. Just remember to cut up these fruits before freezing them. Cans of fruit are also ideal in this situation, as you can store them on any available shelf – but remember to keep checking that expiry date.

Another small tip from grandmothers everywhere is to cook your vegetables into a soup and freeze portions of the soup in freezer bags. Perfect for colder nights when you do not feel like cooking. 

Meat

Of course, we all know that meat can be frozen – and if you are buying in bulk it never hurts to have a chest freezer in your basement. However, never forget to divide the meat into suitable portions, and to wrap it thoroughly to avoid freezer burn.

As above, you can also cook your meat beforehand and keep it handy as a home-made frozen TV dinner.

Grains and Starches

The most important thing is to seal products such as nuts, pasta, rice, flour, etc. properly to avoid any weevils from entering the bags or boxes. Once weevils enter one product, they quickly spread. Consider investing in airtight containers that seal completely. Once this is done, these products are easy to store, as again you can place them in any available cupboard or on a spare shelf anywhere in the house.

Nicotine Pouches

There are two types of nicotine pouches – dry and moist. The real difference between these two types is that moist nicotine pouches contain a bit of water, while the dry nicotine pouches do not. As such, many people prefer to store moist nicotine pouches in the fridge, in order to maintain their moisture. This is in fact not necessary and is actually a matter of preference and in truth you can store your nicotine pouches very easily outside of the fridge. In fact, for convenience, you can leave them in your bag or jacket pocket for easy access throughout the day. If you have bought nicotine pouches in bulk, store them in any place out of direct sunlight, as direct sunlight will dry them out. So, make sure you keep them blocked from the sun and at room temperature to prevent this from happening.

Nicotine pouches do come with an expiry date printed on the packaging. However, this is merely a guideline to ensure the freshest taste. In fact, nicotine pouches are not able to ‘go bad’, so you can still consume them after they have expired – but do bear in mind that the strength, flavor and consistency might be slightly different after the best before date has passed.

If you find yourself needing to stock up your pantry and isolate yourself during these trying times, you can rest assured that these tips will keep your groceries as fresh as possible.