How to Recognize Fresh Foods

Why is fresh food important? More and more research shows that old or already started (opened/used) food isn’t just less tasty, but can seriously harm your health. According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), more than 23 million cases of food poisoning occur every year in the EU, and a large part of this is due to spoiled foods that could be detected by simple observation.

If you wouldn’t put it in your child’s mouth, why would you eat it yourself?

• Fish – Fresh smells like the sea, not a fish market
  
  When we talk about fresh fish, we first think about the smell – and let’s be clear: fish should never “smell like fish.” Fresh fish smells like the sea, salt, and clean algae. If you get hit by a strong, sharp odor – like opening an old fridge – it’s best to leave it where you found it. Fresh fish have:
  
  
  • clear, shiny eyes that look straight ahead (not sleepy-looking),
    
    
  • bright red gills without slime or a grayish tint,
    
    
  • firm flesh that springs back immediately after pressing,
    
    
  • and, interestingly, fresh fish always sinks in water, whereas spoiled fish starts floating like a dead shipwreck because of gases.
  
  This is confirmed by a Norwegian study (2018), which found that decomposition in fish starts as soon as 24 hours at room temperature, whereas it stays fresh for 4–5 days if stored at 0 degrees Celsius.
  
  
• Pork – When color tells you more than the label
  
  Nowadays people check the date on the packaging more often than the meat itself. But signs are obvious. Fresh pork is pinkish red, dry to the touch (not wet or slimy), and doesn’t break down like dough when pressed. If the meat becomes gray, greenish, or if pink liquid leaks from the packaging, that’s a clear sign something’s wrong. Sometimes meat is darker – that’s not always bad, but it means the animal was older or storage was worse. According to a 2022 study by the Slovenian Biotechnical Center, as many as 58% of consumers misjudge the freshness of meat because they trust the date only and don’t use their own senses.
  
  
• Chicken – Delicate bird, spoils quickly
  
  If there’s one food where you must be especially careful, it’s chicken. Fresh chicken has a gentle, almost no odor, and a light pinkish color. When it goes grayish or dark spots, white films, or odd smells appear (like a mix of vinegar and cleaner), it’s a sign of spoilage. This shows up quickest under the wings and in the abdominal cavity, where there’s the most moisture. One of the largest studies on this topic, conducted in the USA (CDC, 2021), showed that spoiled chicken is responsible for more than 40% of salmonella poisoning cases, which further highlights the importance of properly judging freshness.
  
  
• Eggs – The floating freshness detector
  
  Folk wisdom says: if you want to know if an egg is still good, put it in a glass of water. And they’re right! A fresh egg lies at the bottom, while an old one stands upright or floats to the surface. This happens because of an air bubble that grows as the egg loses moisture. According to the National Institute of Public Health Slovenia (NIJZ), eggs should ideally be used up to 21 days after being laid, but only if stored properly – under 5{-15696}C. If you open the egg and it smells strongly of sulfur or rotten, it should go straight to the trash.
  
  
• Mushrooms – Nature’s gift or mysterious enemy
  
  Mushrooms can be really sensitive. Fresh mushrooms are firm, earthy-smelling, their caps aren’t wrinkled, and if you press them gently, they remain firm. When they start to rot, they give off a sour-aromatic smell, reminiscent of ammonia. If dark spots appear or they’re slimy, it’s a clear sign they’re no longer good for the pot. According to a report by the Slovenian Forestry Institute, more than 600 tons of mushrooms are picked yearly, but over 30% ends up in the trash because they’re stored wrong or spoilage is detected too late.
  
  
• Fruit and vegetables – How to know it’s fresh?
  
  At first glance, fruit seems easy to judge. But actually, it’s not. Fresh fruit and vegetables are firm, heavy in the hand, and pleasantly fragrant. If the fruit smells strongly of alcohol, vinegar, or has a bitter note, fermentation has already started. In addition, older fruit loses juiciness. For example, a fresh apple contains about 84% water, an old one can lose up to 15%, which immediately shows in taste and weight. An American study (USDA, 2020) showed that spinach and lettuce are the quickest to spoil by appearance – already after 2 days at room temperature, they lose most vitamins and become a breeding ground for bacteria.

What do our grandmothers and modern science teach us?

In folk medicine, our ancestors recognized food by smell, texture, and color. Even if we live in a world of labels, dates, and packaging today, that doesn’t mean we’ve lost our senses. On the contrary, more than ever, we need to trust them. Science confirms this, with EFSA data showing that as many as 70% of food poisonings could be prevented just by correctly identifying spoilage. And one more important tip: store your food smartly. Dairy products should be in the coldest part of the fridge (around 2–4 degrees Celsius), and meat and fish should be used as soon as possible – ideally in 1–2 days. Fruit should be kept separate from vegetables, because some (like apples) release ethylene, a gas that speeds up ripening – and spoilage – of nearby foods.

Freshness isn’t a luxury – it’s a basic care for your health

No matter if you buy food at the market, in a supermarket, or grow it yourself, you deserve to know what’s going into your body. And don’t forget: not every shiny fish is fresh, not every pink chicken is safe. Use your eyes, nose, and fingers – because you are the last guardian before food goes into the pot.

Information on this website is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice.