From food waste to lost profits, there are so many reasons why small grocery stores would want to maximize the shelf life of the products they sell. With decades under our belt as leading bulk grocery suppliers, we’ve discovered lots of ways to make food last longer by making small changes to the way it’s stored. Here are a few of our best tips to help independent grocers like you minimize shrinkage due to product spoilage.
1. Check Your Refrigeration Temperatures
Refrigerated items must be kept at specific temperatures to keep them fresh for as long as possible. Items like meat, dairy products, seafood, and ripe fruits and vegetables should be kept between 30 and 35 degrees. Unripe fruits and vegetables that produce ethylene gas (such as bananas and onions) can be stored at temperatures of up to 60 degrees.
2. Keep Your Fridges Away from Heat Sources
Even if your fridge is usually set to the correct temperature, exposure to ambient heat can throw off its cooling effects. Place your refrigerators away from any heaters, vents, and even sunbeams to help them do their job consistently.
3. Reseal Your Refrigerators
Your fridges could also be warming up due to poor sealing around the edges of the doors. Check your seals by running your hand along the edges of your fridge and looking for any cold spots. Replace any sealing that doesn’t seem to be doing its job anymore. Your produce and your bottom line will thank you!
4. Defrost Regularly
Fridges must be defrosted regularly to prevent them from malfunctioning due to ice build-up. Many modern fridges have automatic defrost features, so use those if you have access to them. Be sure to inspect the inside of your fridges regularly to check whether they’ve done the job properly. If your fridges are older, use your user manual to manually defrost them according to the manufacturer’s recommendations.
5. Give Your Produce Some Space
Packing as much produce as possible into tiny spaces may save you some shelf real estate, but it also impedes air circulation and may lead to faster spoilage. Instead, arrange your produce carefully to let each piece breathe.
6. Store Ethylene-Producing Foods Separately
Some produce (such as apples, tomatoes, and onions) releases ethylene gas as it ripens. If these foods are stored too close to other produce items, this gas may seep into the neighboring items and cause them to spoil more quickly. Store them separately within your grocery store and make sure your food distributors do the same.
7. Clean Fridges and Displays Regularly
Food can spoil more quickly when exposed to the odors that build up around dirty fridges and displays. Clean yours regularly to keep unpleasant smells at bay and kill any bacteria that might have been left behind. As a bonus, this will also make your store look fresh and inviting for your customers and encourage them to shop there more often.
8. Invest in Vacuum Sealing
Vacuum-sealed meats and seafood last up to 12 days longer than they would if they were stored using conventional methods. This gives you nearly 2 extra weeks to sell those products without risking spoilage. Many quality seafood distributors will ship their products to you in vacuum-seal packaging to ensure maximum freshness throughout the entire fulfillment process.
9. Use Plastic Bags and Shrink Wrap
Produce like carrots and spinach should be packaged in plastic bags to keep them fresh for longer and avoid letting any spoiled items contaminate the rest. Other produce (such as cucumbers) should be shrink-wrapped instead.
10. Discount Aggressively
You can’t optimize your storage solutions when you’ve got too much product on your hands. If you’ve got some products that are at risk of spoiling, consider offering customers a discount on those items a little earlier than you normally would. This gives you more time to offload those products and recoup some of your investment before it’s too late.
Get Quality Wholesale Meat, Seafood, Produce, and More at Foods Galore
The best way to keep your products fresh and salable is to purchase them at peak freshness from reputable suppliers. Food Galore stocks only the best meats and produce from local and international farms, and our speedy shipping service ensures that your order will arrive in perfect condition. Contact us today to inquire about any of our products, get more detail on services like our restaurant grocery supply service, or place your first order.
