Food safety guidance
FoodSaver helps you plan, but it can't tell whether a specific food is safe to eat.
Dates don't guarantee safety
Best-before dates are about quality, not safety. Use-by and expiry dates, storage conditions and handling all matter. FoodSaver never decides if food is safe from a date.
Looks and smell aren't enough
Many harmful bacteria don't change how food looks, smells or tastes. Don't rely on appearance — or on this app — to decide.
Leftovers
Refrigerate cooked food promptly, reheat it thoroughly and follow official guidance on how long leftovers keep.
Allergens
Dietary notes in this app are entered by you and are not verified. Always read the product label.
When in doubt, throw it out
If you're unsure whether food is safe, don't eat it.
Official sources (Government of Canada)
Storage rules used by this app
These are the only storage times FoodSaver uses. Each one was copied by hand from the official page linked.
| Food | Fridge (safety) | Freezer (quality) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cooked leftovers Health Canada's leftovers page says 2 to 3 days; its storage chart says 3 to 4 days for many cooked dishes. The app uses the shorter time. Freezer time (quality) is the chart's 2–3 months for cooked dishes. | 2–3 days | 2–3 months | Health Canada — Food safety tips for leftovers |
| Soups (cooked) | 2–3 days | 4 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Raw poultry (chicken, turkey) Uses the chart's time for chicken/turkey pieces (whole birds keep 1 year frozen). | 2–3 days | 6 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Raw ground meat | 1–2 days | 2–3 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Raw beef or pork (pieces) Beef and pork are both 2–4 days in the fridge. Freezer quality: beef 10–12 months, pork 8–12 months; the app shows the shorter 8–12. | 2–4 days | 8–12 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Raw fish Lean and fatty fish are both 3–4 days in the fridge. Freezer quality uses the shorter fatty-fish time (2 months; lean fish 6 months). | 3–4 days | 2 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Shrimp or scallops | 1–2 days | 2–4 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Cooked ham Assumes cooked ham. Canned ham has a different time (6–9 months in the fridge) — choose another rule if that's what you have. | 3–4 days | 2–3 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Raw sausages Assumes raw sausage, the shorter time. Pre-cooked links keep 1 week in the fridge. | 1–2 days | 1–2 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Fresh eggs in shell | 3–4 weeks | Don't freeze | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Milk Freezer time (6 weeks) is for unopened milk; the chart says not to freeze opened milk. | Opened: 3 days; Unopened: package date | 6 weeks | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Yogurt | Opened: 3 days; Unopened: package date | 1–2 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Soft cheese (e.g. queso fresco) The app treats queso fresco as a soft cheese. The chart says soft cheese “doesn't freeze well”. | 1 week | Not given | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Semi-soft cheese | 2–3 weeks | 8 weeks | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Firm cheese | 5 weeks | 3 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Hard cheese | 10 months | 12 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Butter Freezer quality uses unsalted butter's 3 months (salted keeps 1 year). | Opened: 3 weeks; Unopened: 8 weeks | 3 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Carrots | 2 weeks | 10–12 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Lettuce Uses the shorter leaf-lettuce time (iceberg lettuce keeps 1–2 weeks). | 3–7 days | Don't freeze | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Spinach | 2–4 weeks | 10–12 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Summer squash (zucchini) | 1 week | 10–12 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Winter squash | 2 weeks | 10–12 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
| Tomatoes | Don't refrigerate | 2 months | Health Canada — Safe food storage |
How each source was used
Official pages open in English; each one has a French version.
- Health Canada — Safe food storage
Page dated Apr 11, 2024, read on Oct 30, 2026.
Full page read in a browser. Used the “Fridge and freezer storage” chart (fridge at 4 °C or lower = safety times, freezer at −18 °C = quality times) and the advice to refrigerate raw meat, poultry, fish and seafood as soon as you get home.
- Health Canada — Food safety tips for leftovers
Page dated Apr 10, 2025, read on Oct 30, 2026.
Full page read in a browser. Used: “Eat refrigerated leftovers within 2 to 3 days, or freeze them”, “Throw away any cooked food left out at room temperature for more than two hours” and reheating to 74 °C.
- Health Canada — Storing leftovers (infographic)
Page dated Sep 6, 2024, read on Oct 30, 2026.
Full page read in a browser. Lists 3 to 4 days in the fridge for most cooked dishes and 2 to 3 days for soups. The app uses the shorter 2–3 days from the leftovers tips page for all leftovers.
- Public Health Agency of Canada — General food safety tips
Page dated Jun 20, 2017, read on Oct 30, 2026.
Full page read in a browser. Used: “Refrigerate or freeze perishable food within two hours of cooking” and the 4 °C–60 °C danger zone.
- Health Canada — Safe cooking temperatures
Page dated May 29, 2020, read on Oct 30, 2026.
Full page read in a browser. Used the internal temperatures for poultry pieces (74 °C), ground meat (71 °C), egg dishes (74 °C), fish (70 °C) and leftovers (74 °C) in recipe safety notes.
- Government of Canada (Recalls and safety alerts) — Best-before and expiration dates of foods: what you should know
Page dated Dec 2, 2021, read on Oct 30, 2026.
Read through a web search summary, not the full page (the CFIA date-labelling page was blocked from our test browser). Used only: best-before dates are about quality, not safety, and shelf life can change once a package is opened.
- Government of Canada — Recalls and safety alerts
Read on Oct 30, 2026.
Linked as the place to check recall notices. No storage times are taken from it.