Revealed: Surprising foods that you're storing wrong

You may end up throwing away more than you need to if you store it incorrectly. Photo / Getty Images

Many may have raised eyebrows at the news that apples and oranges should be kept in the fridge, according to a UK Government-backed report.

But they are not the only surprising foods that are best kept chilled, according to official food waste advisers.

Plums, tomatoes and even pears belong in the refrigerator rather than in the cupboard or in a fruit bowl, reports the Daily Mail.

It follows the launch of a new blue fridge logo on food packets that aims to help prevent $1.9 billion worth of edible fresh produce being thrown away every year.

The best way to store perishable foods is in the original packaging in a fridge where the temperature is kept below 5C, it was announced by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (Wrap) today.

However the list of foods which it recommends shoppers keep in their fridges may surprise some.

The foods include items you may keep in the fruit bowl, such as plums and pears, while carrots are actually best kept chilled too.

Wrap has also revealed the best way to keep groceries fresher for longer, such as using lemon juice to stop avocados from turning brown and freshening up broccoli by storing it in a glass of water when it starts to wilt.

The foods to keep in the fridge

Apples – Best kept in the fridge in their original packaging and not the fruit bowl

Avocado – Keep avocados fresher for longer by storing them in their original packaging in the fridge. Lemon juice helps to stop cut avocados turning brown.

Broccoli – Broccoli should be stored in the fridge in its original packaging. Freshen up broccoli by placing the stem in a jar or glass of water in the fridge.

Carrots – Carrots stay fresh and hard for even longer by keeping them in the fridge and keeping in the packaging or loosely tied in the free vegetable bag they were brought home in.

Cauliflower – Keep cauliflower fresher for longer by storing it in its original packaging in the fridge.

Celery – keep in any packaging and pop it in the fridge. It will keep for weeks.

Cheese – Hard cheese should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge or use a bag clip to seal the packaging. Blue cheese can be wrapped in tin foil.

Cucumber – Keep it in its original packaging in the fridge

Eggs – Best kept in the fridge in their box, you can tell if they're fresh, by putting them in water – if they float they're off, if they sink they're good

Eggs are best kept in the fridge. Photo / Getty Images

Herbs - Instead of putting your fresh herbs into the salad drawer, half fill an old jar with cold water, stand the herbs in the jar and cover with a (recycled!) plastic bag held with an elastic band. Keep in the door of your fridge.

Kiwi - Store kiwis in their original packaging in the fridge, but away from other fruits.

Leek - Leeks are best stored in the fridge in their original packaging or alternatively inside a loosely tied plastic bag to help keep them fresher for longer.

Lemons - Keep lemons in the fridge, in a loosely tied plastic bag, for freshness. Bring to room temperature to use them.

Lettuce - Lettuce should be left in its original packaging in the fridge (if it came wrapped) and in the crisper drawer, if your fridge has one. Put lettuce leaves in a tub lined with a piece of kitchen paper to keep them fresher. Lettuce gone a bit limp? Soak individual leaves in a bowl of cold water in the fridge, they'll soon perk up.

Melons - Melons stay fresh for up to a week longer if kept in the fridge.

Mushrooms - When buying loose mushrooms, keep them in the paper bags provided and put in the fridge for freshness. Chilled they last much longer than if kept out of the fridge.

Orange - Store oranges in the fridge. Oranges keep their freshness and quality for much longer than storing them at room temperature, and keeping them in the fridge in a loosely tied plastic bag will also help stop them shrivelling up.

Pears - For freshness and quality, store pears in the fridge, ideally in their original packaging or in a loosely tied plastic bag, which will also help stop them shrivelling up.

Pepper - Store them in the fridge in their original packaging. Always put cut peppers in a storage container or bag in the crisper drawer, if your fridge has one.

Plums - Keep plums fresher for longer by storing them in their original packaging in the fridge.

Tomato - Keep tomatoes fresher for longer by keeping them in their original packaging in the fridge. Supermarket tomatoes have been chilled in transportation so there is no value in keeping them out of the fridge to retain flavour, but you could always take them out of the fridge a few minutes before serving if you prefer.

Vegetables - Put old carrots or soft celery into a glass of water in the fridge to revive them.

Watercress - Try to buy watercress in bunches and keep it fresh by putting the stems in a jar of water (like a bunch of flowers) and store in the fridge.

Keeping these foods in the fridge in their original packaging will add three days to the life of many foods, according to Wrap.

It has issued new labelling guidance to supermarkets which recommends the 'little blue fridge' logo should be used on packs alongside the wording 'Store in the fridge below 5C'.
It believes this will serve as a constant reminder to families to make sure their fridges are kept cold enough.

Wrap said: "Only one third of UK fridges are set within the recommended temperature range, below 5C, and another third operate above 9C.

"Ensuring the correct temperatures for household fridges and storing the right foods in the fridge can add an average of three days life to food, and save households $545 million a year."