How long does bread last

Keep bread somewhere cool and dry, in a bread box or a paper bag. The fridge dries it. FoodKeeper still prints a fridge line for bread after opening, 2–3 weeks. That is not the usual place, and it is a published window. The sealed loaf’s cupboard window is 14–18 days. A sooner best-before date on the bag wins. The split is on the use-by and best-before guide.

FoodKeeper does not print a day-count for an unwrapped bakery loaf. Eat that one in the first days, and freeze the slices you will not finish the day you buy it. If mould shows on one slice, the whole loaf goes: the threads run where you cannot see them.

Get perishable food into the fridge within 2 hours of cooking it or bringing it home, and within 1 hour if the kitchen is above 32°C (90°F). USDA FSIS and Turkey’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry both publish that cutoff. A closed deep pot stays warm; a shallow box cools.

A chart is a window, not a verdict on the container in your hand. A sour smell, a slimy surface, or mould means it is finished, even on day one. This page is not medical advice.

• Green, black, or white mould, even on one slice.
• A sour or damp smell, or sweat inside the bag.
• A sticky crumb, or a coloured spot.

Going firm is not mould. A stale slice can be toasted. A mouldy slice is finished.

Freeze slices with a scrap of paper between them. The ministry lists bread in the freezer at 3 months. FoodKeeper lists commercial bread at 3–5 months. The large figure is the shorter one. A thawed slice softens in a few minutes at room temperature. Do not refreeze it. A toaster will take a frozen slice.

Thaw in the refrigerator, not on the counter. Do not refreeze a portion that has thawed. The ministry states the same rule: thaw frozen food in the fridge and take out only what you will eat.

• The fridge saves bread from mould, so that is its home. It dries the loaf. FoodKeeper’s fridge line for opened bread is 2–3 weeks; the cupboard line for a sealed loaf is 14–18 days. If you see mould, the window is over.
• Cut off the mouldy slice and the rest of the loaf is fine. Bread is porous. One spot finishes the loaf.
• Three to five months is every list’s number. FoodKeeper says 3–5 months. The ministry says 3 months. The large figure is the shorter one.

The windows assume a generally healthy household. Pregnancy, young children, older age, or a weakened immune system are reasons to keep the shorter figure, to skip raw or undercooked food, and to reheat leftovers until the centre is steaming. USDA’s figure for reheating leftovers is 74°C (165°F).

Mouldy bread is not something to test in pregnancy, for young children, in older age, or with a weakened immune system. Heating does not take back what the mould has done. Bin the crumbs and dry the box.