It was posts like Zeke's I was trying to help others interpret (temper) with my experience. No doubt he is trying to be helpful and he is a key member around here. Yes many nuts generally don't last long and can go rancid, but his post mandates people fall victim to "letting the ideal be the enemy of good". Freezer a few years or an orchard, no middle ground. "It's just that simple." Yes, planting nut trees is the best way for nuts long term (which btw, I do have an almond on my property which is why I focus on it so much). But it's difficult for lay folks to sift through generalized "dont do it" advice when we're looking for specific best-fit alternatives.
At this point, I realize I have made a major blunder in my post. Everywhere it said LTS or long term really should have been medium term. I never expected to get 20 years out of nut storage. I was hoping maybe 7 years for the almonds if kept mostly refigerated and indoors. Certainly longer than 1 year or frozen only a few years. With Blue Diamonds site stating 35-45F is "ideal storage" temp, 7 years is probably feasible if I don't screw it up (seal poorly, include too much moisture, etc). Also, my test of under the house could never compare to the length of refrigerated.
Also, Zeke mentions the killer word: toxins. There are toxins and there are toxins. We unknowingly eat lots of toxic things everyday. Heck everything is toxic, like water, the only meaningful difference is dosage and the consumer. We consume toxins intentionally for side effects. I just explained this to my daughter two days ago when she saw a wine barrell. "If we put grape juice in there for years, doesnt it go bad?" Um yeah, thats what alcohol is. The old bottle of cooking oil, the last of your wheat flour, etc. I am not condoning anyone eat moldy nuts that smell rancid, you can get very sick. I also throw away those last bits in the bag, jar. I fear botulism, too.
I understand it's probably easier for a website/individuals to avoid liability by scaring away anyone tackling a dangerous area, rather than hoping they'll rely on using common sense or self-educating before they go gung-ho into storage, then get so far in with time & money a cognitive dissonance develops disabling them from their requirement to toss their investment.
With so much negativity against storing nuts, most of which originates from a valid foundation, I honestly was surprised a blast of rancidity didnt explode from the can when I broke the seal. Thus my sharing with others. But one of Zekes point is valid, I do not claim our family collection of noses can detect small (or an arguable 'reasonable' amount of rancidity), but one of us should be able to detect high or poisonous levels. But I do trust my wife who says she absolutely has a nose for rancid nuts. We ate the nuts several days ago, before we took any pics and posted here. For arguments sake, let's assume there is 'some' level of rancidity in these nuts. It's my understanding they lose their vitamins first and only long term (there's that term) or excesive consumption would cause health issues for nuts like this without any signs of rancidity we can detect. Am I wrong?
Thanks again NYMin for the detailed reply. I am a little surprised they even posted the 3 years category. The pessimist in me ponders if they ever do testing whether they would release results that raw unshelled almonds canned with OA @ ambient temps might last medium term, such as 7 years.
As NYMin quotes, Blue Diamond states 3 years shelf life and that's without 1) oxygen absorbers (nor nitro flush), nor 2) any refrig cooling beyond ambient, and 3) not in #10 cans that prevent passive gaseous transfer, all of which is how my test was conducted. I even question the 3 years, since we know what the expiration date on canned foods represents and why it's rarely more than 2 years ahead. Is this 3 years a guaraneed Fresh By date?
At this point, I realize I have made a major blunder in my post. Everywhere it said LTS or long term really should have been medium term. I never expected to get 20 years out of nut storage. I was hoping maybe 7 years for the almonds if kept mostly refigerated and indoors. Certainly longer than 1 year or frozen only a few years. With Blue Diamonds site stating 35-45F is "ideal storage" temp, 7 years is probably feasible if I don't screw it up (seal poorly, include too much moisture, etc). Also, my test of under the house could never compare to the length of refrigerated.
Also, Zeke mentions the killer word: toxins. There are toxins and there are toxins. We unknowingly eat lots of toxic things everyday. Heck everything is toxic, like water, the only meaningful difference is dosage and the consumer. We consume toxins intentionally for side effects. I just explained this to my daughter two days ago when she saw a wine barrell. "If we put grape juice in there for years, doesnt it go bad?" Um yeah, thats what alcohol is. The old bottle of cooking oil, the last of your wheat flour, etc. I am not condoning anyone eat moldy nuts that smell rancid, you can get very sick. I also throw away those last bits in the bag, jar. I fear botulism, too.
I understand it's probably easier for a website/individuals to avoid liability by scaring away anyone tackling a dangerous area, rather than hoping they'll rely on using common sense or self-educating before they go gung-ho into storage, then get so far in with time & money a cognitive dissonance develops disabling them from their requirement to toss their investment.
With so much negativity against storing nuts, most of which originates from a valid foundation, I honestly was surprised a blast of rancidity didnt explode from the can when I broke the seal. Thus my sharing with others. But one of Zekes point is valid, I do not claim our family collection of noses can detect small (or an arguable 'reasonable' amount of rancidity), but one of us should be able to detect high or poisonous levels. But I do trust my wife who says she absolutely has a nose for rancid nuts. We ate the nuts several days ago, before we took any pics and posted here. For arguments sake, let's assume there is 'some' level of rancidity in these nuts. It's my understanding they lose their vitamins first and only long term (there's that term) or excesive consumption would cause health issues for nuts like this without any signs of rancidity we can detect. Am I wrong?
Thanks again NYMin for the detailed reply. I am a little surprised they even posted the 3 years category. The pessimist in me ponders if they ever do testing whether they would release results that raw unshelled almonds canned with OA @ ambient temps might last medium term, such as 7 years.
