Fungi, as we’ve seen, naturally colonize grains, and they fare better than bacteria in low water activity foods. Preservatives can delay that, and there are several used in the bakery industry specifically to delay fungal growth, as anyone in Food Microbiology Lab will see with the Wonder Bread vs. Rustic Country Bread from La Quartier bakery. And then there are Twinkies…
Twinkies are one of those foods rumored to be indestructible. Stories and photos of Twinkies that are one two years old or older are not that uncommon on social media, at least in the regions where I hang out (marshmallow Peeps and a certain McDonald’s hamburger are other foods that have gained fame for their apparent indestructibility). However, there is a limit to the shelf life of even these foods, as discussed on NPR regarding a box of eight-year-old Twinkies.
I find the headline – “A Disturbing Twinkie That Has, So Far, Defied Science” – a bit misleading; “science” is not particularly baffled, nor yet is the fact of a perishable food eventually perishing particularly in defiance of the laws of nature. But it serves as a cool reminder that if we don’t eat our food, others are waiting – even if it takes them years to get to it.
Image from study scientist Matt Kasson