Mom opens up the tin tomato can and scoops out half of it to make jollof rice or one of those tasty delicacies then she puts the rest in the fridge. Dad punches a big hole in the milk tin can, pours some milk in his tea and puts the rest in the fridge. I wonder how many can identify with these scenarios today. So, is it safe to store food in the fridge in an opened can?
Cans that store food in developed countries are mostly made from non-reactive substances and are lined as well. It is therefore not poisonous to store food in them in the refrigerator. However, canned food will look better and retain more of its flavor if it is transferred to a glass or plastic storage container after it has been opened. Repackaging food once a can is opened is a good practice.
In developing countries, the story is different. It is likely that in many of these countries, tin cans are welded with substances containing lead and other dangerous materials. Unlike in developed countries, in many developing countries, the production of these tin containers are not well monitored if monitored at all. I have noticed in some of these countries many times that the can holding food has rusts along the edges. Corrosion can also be seen on top of the can in many instances. This is not a good sign.
While developed nations have set a limit to the amount of tin that can be in contact with food that is eaten, it is not so in most parts of the developing world. The challenge is for these governments to regulate the standard of what is made within their borders and what is allowed as imports.
So, the question of storing opened can food in the refrigerator in the developing country scenario is redundant in my opinion.
If you have food in a tin container, once you open it, transfer the contents to a glass or plastic container. You should be aware that the irregularity of power means that food in the refrigerator is cold and then warm and then cold several times a day encouraging the growth of bacteria faster than if it wasn’t in the refrigerator.
Storing food especially acidic foods like tomato paste in open cans may also add a metallic flavor to the food which takes away from the original taste.
Make sure that you always wash the top of your food cans before you open it. It is not hard to imagine how many filthy hands with disease-carrying bacteria that has touched the canned food before it reached you.
I once heard of a man who got Lassa Fever from eating a canned food. Lassa fever is transmitted by contact with the urine or feces of rats and I know for a fact that many storage facilities are infested with rats. All it takes is for a Lassa infected rat to urinate on the top of the can. The urine dries off but the danger remains. Later when you open that canned food and the infected lid makes contact with your food, you might be in serious trouble.
Wherever you live, it is always a good idea to repackage food stored in a tin into a glass of plastic storage. It is also important to wash the top of the container before you open it. This simple action might make the difference between staying healthy or catching bacterial infections or worse still a viral one like Lassa fever.
