"I've got critters in my containers! Last December, you and I purchased some neat looking containers to store dry goods (oatmeal, flour, beans, rice, sugar, etc.) The containers look terrific on the counter, and really free up space in the cupboards, which you know in my beach condo are T-I-N-Y! But I don't think the containers we purchased are good to store food in. I found thousands of small bugs in with the barley. I wonder why that happened? Maybe this is a question for the OrganizingLA Blog? -- Signed, 'Varmints in Venice'"
Dear "Varmints in Venice,"
To answer your question: It's hard to say. Most simple seal containers are basically fine for that kind of food storage. I phoned the Container Store in Pasadena, where we bought the containers, and they said they were fine for dry food storage.
With Barley in particular, the shelf life is 4-9 months. At 2-3 months, you should inspect the barley carefully prior to using it. I phoned Chris McKenry (an organizing colleague, food safety expert and owner of Get It Together LA!) who said barley and flour are among the two hardest kitchen items to store. Flour milled from whole grains does not keep as long as highly refined flour because the germ portion of the whole grain can cause the flour to become rancid over time, and eggs eventually hatch. Flour that does not look or smell good should not be used regardless if you see critters or not. It is best to buy smaller quantities of flour if you are finding it necessary to continually discard the flour due to spoilage. So, if you are using the barley we containerized, that was exactly 9 months ago, and we're way into the spoilage date.
Make sure at this point, you discard the flours in a sealed plastic bag and throughly inspect the other items in adjoining containers. You COULD get a super-seal container from Rubbermaid, and keep the barley in the fridge, or freezer, but that won't keep it much longer, according to McKenry. I would also figure out a way to date-stamp the containers, too.
Hope all this helps. We appreciate you letting us know-- really.
