FIFO Rotation

Any pantry regardless of size should work on the FIFO (first in, first out) method.  What this really means is the oldest food is used first.  This applies to all aspects of your pantry including refrigerator and freezer.  This requires organization but reduces food wastage.  If you are a home canner, this method ensures you will find any false seals before they become a problem.  It also ensures that any problems with commercially processed foods are caught before they are a problem.  There are many ways to do the FIFO method. 

Some folks use colour coded dots and others write the date with a marker.  My method doesn't include colour coding but it is visual.  We rely heavily on home canned foods so what I do is store filled jars in rows on a shelf, front to back.  The number of jars per row depends on the size of the jar - 6 for L (qt) and 7 for 500 ml (pt), more for the 250 ml (1/2 pt).  Underneath the row running the length of the shelf is painters tape.  I write the contents, year and number of filled jars.  As I use a jar, I move the remaining jars forward the put the empty clean jar to the back of the row for storage.  Once the entire row is filled with empty jars, I have a clear visual of what needs to be canned again.  For commercially canned foods, I use a similar method always moving old stock to the front, new stock to the back.  I also use the FIFO method for dried foods and long term storage. 

For commercially processed foods, I know how much we will use in a given time frame.  So if we use 4 cans/boxes/bags of something, I start with 5 then watch the sales and buy enough to get me back to that 5 then repeat the process for the next month.  Some foods technically don't need to be rotated (ei. sugars, salts, baking soda, cornstarch, vinegars, low methoxy pectins, instant coffee, and other forever foods).  I rotate these foods as well because that's what I'm used to.   

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