[Dailydrool] Dented cans

[Anne Savidge]

I wanted to weigh in on the issue of dented cans of food, too, even though I don't have a hound to feed, canned food or otherwise.

I volunteered several times at a local food bank. This particular one is an enormous enterprise, not something like a small church food pantry. One of the tasks that my volunteer group was given on more than one occasion was sorting through piles of dented cans that had been donated by grocery stores. Shallow dents are considered cosmetic, and do not harm the contents. We had to separate cans with those, which are safe to give to people, from cans with deep, sharp dents where the steel surface may have been cracked or punctured by the dent, even if we couldn't see it.

Dents with no sharp or clearly straight edges should not pose a contamination risk to the contents, but check each can for rust around the edge of the dent just to be sure. If you're unsure, then of course, you can stay on the 100% safe side and not buy the dented ones.

Auntie Anne (who hasn't gotten ptomaine or botulism herself from dented cans, either)