How long should packaged salad last?

If it’s a large plastic container, I tuck a couple of pieces of paper towel in the sides of it. It seems to help. When I’m ready to use it, I take a portion and wash and spin dry it, even if it says it has been tripled washed.
 
seadoug said:
I buy a lot of the "chopped" salad kits that have some interesting side ingredients and the dressing included. We have them for lunch with some type of protein on top 5 days a week. The chopped ones have ingredients like cabbage, broccoli, etc. and they seem to last the longest. The ones with lettuce can sometimes look wilted even before the "use by" date. I usually throw them out.
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I only recently discovered the Taylor Farms chopped salads. I love them, specially the Caesar salad, and you can get an individual one for under $2.
 
I used to dig around in the racks of bagged/boxed salad mixes, trying to reach the freshest ones in the back. Then I noticed something a few weeks ago at my local supermarket when a worker was stocking them: Those racks of can be pulled directly forward, enabling you easily to reach the ones at the back.

I'm not sure if the store doesn't want customers doing this—and, frankly, with today's prices, I don't care. Groceries are too expensive to be "polite" and buy a bag that expires in a day or so when I can pay the same price and get one whose date is stamped with a date several days out.
 
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Babs2u said:
I only recently discovered the Taylor Farms chopped salads. I love them, specially the Caesar salad, and you can get an individual one for under $2.
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Yes, we swear by the Taylor Farms packaged salads! Some of the most tasty salads are actually at Trader Joe's but I don't make it there very often.
 
Fresh green salad is such a gamble these days, I'm getting sick of it. The 3 pack of Romaine seems to be a good choice, the moisture is held low, which might make it a little wilted, but not usually brown.
 
I think it depends on how soon it was shipped to the grocery store after it was picked. And then how soon was it put out to purchase. I don't recall seeing best buy dates on lettuce 🥬 here but maybe I missed it. I have gotten some lettuce that spoiled quickly but only once recently.
 
This is God saving Deb from making her entire congregation sick and being cast out into the darkness.

Even when fresh, packaged salad is one of the "most likely to cause food poisoning" items of the produce section. I got so sick from some boxed kale last year I quit buying that kind at all.

In fact, between 1973 and 2012, 85% of the food poisoning outbreaks in the US that were caused by leafy greens such as cabbage, kale, lettuce and spinach were traced back to food prepared in a restaurant or catering facility (13Trusted Source).
To minimize your risk, always wash salad leaves thoroughly before eating. Do not purchase bags of salad mix that contain spoiled, mushy leaves and avoid pre-prepared salads that have been left to sit at room temperature."
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From Healthline.
 
Nathan said:
I bought this packaged Romaine lettuce this past Monday or Tuesday, it has a sticker that says it's best by 11/29:

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As I mentioned above the harvest date is on the packages of romaine hearts, which in this case is 11/12/25. 17 days past harvest for romaine is an eternity.

Romaine shipped to the market in NYC from California arrives in no longer than 5 days by truck. If that load isn't sold by the next morning after arrival it is basically worthless. We have gotten so used to eating old produce we have no idea how good fresh produce can be. And I'm specifically referring to berries, lettuces, veg like green beans, broccoli, eggplant, asparagus, green onions, and cucumbers, etc. Fruit excluding berries, potatoes and onions, celery, carrots, can generally tolerate the slow turnover in the grocery stores distribution system although the quality does degrade.
 
debodun said:
I bough a large plastic container of what is called "spring mix" salad on Thursday to make a tossed salad to bring to church. I went to do that this morning and the salad was wilted and some pieces were slimy. I was disappointed that it didn't last even 3 days in the fridge. This photo isn't my actual purchase, it's just to show the type of container.

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That is the exact salad I used to buy for my pet rabbit. I had to go through the whole container to find all the slimy pieces before I used it. Especially the red leaf lettuce which usually turns black first. I hated buying it and felt it was a waste of money. Maybe I could use half of it if I got it in time. But I had no choice. It might depend on how long the store had it also before you bought it.
 

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