Is there a difference between freezing meat at 26°F and 0°F?
According to this answer, you are allowed to market turkeys as fresh as long as they haven't been frozen below 26°F. What is the purpose of this law/regulation?
Best Answer
Water freezes at 32F, but turkey contains more than just water. Alton Brown answers this question in his original turkey episode of Good eats. The meat freezes at 26F, so they can call it "fresh" if it's kept at say, 30F (below the freezing temp for water).
The USDA recognizes "frozen" for a turkey as having been brought down to 0F. Apparently the middle range is called "refrigerated" (frozen, but not quite as rock hard as a bird at 0F).
Edit: The rules themselves make sense I think. At 30f your turkey meat isn't frozen. Now whether the transport and stores have it at 25f or 27f I don't know how strict they are. I could see turkeys crossing that 26f threshold because of human error.
Edit 2: As Ben pointed out. Surface ice is very likely as the bird itself is below the freezing point of water. Condensation will freeze on the surface as normal. It is the quality of the meat that is of concern.
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What temperature should you freeze meat at?
Freezing temperature is a crucial aspect of storing meat. People should keep meat frozen at a temperature of 0\xb0F (-18\xb0C) or below. The USDA note that this temperature inhibits the growth of bacteria and shuts down any other microbes, such as yeasts and molds, in the food.What temperature should frozen meat be kept at and for how long?
Properly handled food stored in a freezer at 0\xb0F (-18 \xb0C) will always be safe as long as it hasn't thawed. The food is safe because the bacteria has entered a dormant stage. For best quality, store frozen raw ground meats no more than 3 to 4 months; cooked meats, 2 to 3 months.Does meat freeze at 29 degrees?
Freezers should hold the temp at 0 degrees or lower. Your meat should be fine since technically freezing is 32F. I would use it before the food that is hard frozen and keep an eye on the temp. You might want to get another thermometer to assure accuracy.Will meat stay frozen at 32 degrees?
So, in general, the colder you can keep your freezer (within reasonable limits), the longer the quality life of the food products stored within it. Most foods will maintain good quality longer if the freezer temperature is -10 to -20 \xb0F. At temperatures between 0 and 32 \xb0F, food deteriorates more rapidly.Freezing and Thawing Beef 101 | How-To Tips from a Chef
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