Decade old burger still going strong

It may be 10 years old, but this burger still hasn't gone mouldy. Photo / Reddit

We all know McDonald's burgers have preservatives in them, but this image of a 10-year-old burger and fries with virtually no mould is enough to make you shudder.

A Reddit user posted the photo of the burger and fries, along with a note to say they were purchased in 2006 and have never been refrigerated.

While the food looks dry and stale, there is no visible mould, and few signs of decay.

The Reddit user posted the disturbing pic alongside the caption, "This girl I know bought this McDonald's Cheeseburger and fries 10 years ago this month. It looks fresh out of the drive thru."

The decade old burger is pictured next to a note saying "do not eat!" Photo / Reddit

The image has caused a wave of intrigue among Reddit users, with some people saying the high salt content of the food has helped with its preservation, while others have mused over what would motivate someone to hold on to a burger for a decade.

"You can do this with just about any low moisture food," wrote one Reddit user. "The burgers contain little moisture, the bread is low moisture, the pickles are pickled in vinegar... nothing here is surprising really if you know anything about food."

While another viewer put it down to a process similar to mummification. "Plain burger and fries... very little moisture overall. Desiccated, why would it decay? If you want to see something truly amazing, ancient peoples preserved their dead! It's called mummification."

This fresh version doesn't look too different to the decade old burger and fries. Photo / Getty

One Reddit user expressed concern about the burger owner's tidiness. "I'm imagining going back to her place after a few dates and just seeing this sitting on a shelf. How do you justify having that?"

"Grossed out by the fact that she's been holding on to fast food for ten years just to prove a point that everyone already knows: McDonald's isn't healthy." said another.

Other commenters took a more matter-of-fact view. "If bacteria, moulds and fungi won't eat it neither will I," said one Reddit user.

Earlier last year, Herald staff did their own informal experiment, using burgers from a range of takeaway outlets.

After a 15 day period, the McDonald's burger showed no signs of decay, while similar burgers from Carl's Jnr and Burger King had started to go mouldy.

- nzherald.co.nz