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BiWiccanAndProud · Jan 24, 2012, 11:10 AM

Okay so I have a tendency to leave my groceries out after I go shopping. I always tell the people sacking to put ALL the cold stuff together. This is so that when I get home, exhausted cause we do a lot of shopping, I can just put up the cold and frozen stuff and leave out the non perishables to put up later. This last time I went shopping I was particularly lazy and left the non perishables out for 2 days before starting to put them up. I found that (once again) the sacker at the Dillons near my house can't seem to listen and put my package of American Singles with a bunch of boxes of hamburger helper. It was still fairly cold (as my house is usually kind of chilly) but not like I just got if off the shelf cold. I put it in the fridge right away hoping it was still good. None of us have been brave enough to try it yet so... Would the cheese slices still be okay to eat? Thank you.

Curlyben · Jan 24, 2012, 11:24 AM

As cheese slices are only just cheese, (in the UK they cannot be called that, but cheese food) they are what is termed as an ambient product, so don't need to be fridged.

0rphan · Jan 24, 2012, 12:15 PM

You should always store cheese in a refrigerator,however the best way is your taste buds/nose, these are usually the best judge of when it becomes inedible.
Chances are if it's enjoyable to eat, then it's probably acceptable to eat.
Cheddar is a particularly resilient cheese,as it's semi-hard,you should be fine unless it smells too "ripe" to eat.

However I must add that most places recommend cheese should not be left out of the fridge for more than 2 hours, it's probably safe if un-opened and not exposed to high temperatures to leave it out for 24 hours, but then you face the risk of food poisoning by consuming.

My own opinion is,if it looks OK and doesn't smell, then I'd eat it.

I think the choice has to be yours...

BiWiccanAndProud · Jan 24, 2012, 10:12 PM

Well it's not hard cheddar or anything. It's a package of individually wrapped slices, it's really soft, and most people use it for stuff like grilled cheese cause it melts really fast. And it does say keep refrigerated on the package. I'm kind of scared to eat it to see if it's good, cause if it's not I will probably get food poisoning. I just want a decent idea as to if I should eat it or just throw it out. A lot of the time our house is 50-65 degrees and like I said it was left out for 2 days.

Wondergirl · Jan 24, 2012, 10:16 PM

My mother's motto is, "When in doubt, throw it out."

0rphan · Jan 25, 2012, 12:25 PM

I thought you meant hard cheese.Cheese slices are individually wrapped and sealed,stopping air getting into the pack,keeping it fresh longer,however these sort of foods still have to be chilled and you say it's already been out for 2 days - quite honestly I would play safe and throw them out... not really worth the risk I don't think.

BiWiccanAndProud · Feb 15, 2012, 09:44 PM

Thank you everyone for your answers my mother in law actually ate it by accident and never got sick so I guess it was okay >.<

pkz · May 6, 2012, 07:56 AM

Because american slices are highly processed and many times are stored at your grocers in the boxes unrefrigerated until they are placed in the dairy case. So, while you should always refrigerate-your 2 days in a cool environment had no effect on their quality.
What you should really be questioning is the fact that they DID remain to the same taste test standard after improper handling. This is chemically processed food... what are you putting into your body? I love american cheese too, but it is not a quality food to begin with.