We’ve all been eating cheese wrong, apparently. Maddie (@houserwebbfamily) posted a viral TikTok where she shared her shock and newfound devotion to stricter cheese-eating protocol.
This was after discovering messages on the back of some cheeses she purchased that state consumers should throw away the cheese they bought three to five days after opening it.
Concerned, Maddie wanted to know just why in the heck the best-by dates printed on the packaging were months past this three-to-five days mark.
The video begins with Maddie looking into the camera, casting an expression that appears to be a look of disbelief, towards the camera. A text overlay reads, “Did everyone else know this?” over a recording of her holding up several bags of pre-packaged cheeses.
“Did you know that this cheese goes bad three to five days after you open it? Shredded cheese, sliced cheese, doesn’t matter the brand, it says,” she relays as she points to the back of the shredded cheese bag and reads what it says: “Use within three to five days of opening.”
She then picks up another package of cheese.
“When my husband and I discovered this I think it was like a couple of weeks ago at this point, I think we just stood in the kitchen in silence and stared at each other,” she says. “What do you mean three to five days?”
Several folks said they weren’t all that concerned with the urgings of Big Cheese.
One wrote, “No mold, it’s gold.”
Someone else said while these rules might pertain to those who do everything by the book, in their household, they abide by a different set of rules.
“Not round here partner, not round here,” one commented.
Another quipped that it was simply a question of economics, writing, “We ain’t got ‘cheese goes bad 3-5 days after opening’ kind of money!”
“I’m just going to choose to pretend I never saw this video,” someone else joked.
And then some proudly claimed membership to the “no mold club” stating that as long as there wasn’t any visible fungal growth, they were free to put it in their sandwiches.
“Mo mold, it’s gold,” one said, while another person believes that this is just a tactic being used by cheese companies to fool people into buying more cheese.
“This is just capitalism,” they said. “I’m eating it until it smells funky or I see mold.”
Maddie didn’t seem convinced by the commenter’s argument and said that after reading the information on the back of the package, she ultimately decided to appease the cheese Gods and stay away from consuming it past that 5-day mark.
@houserwebbfamily just a traumatic adult life event ig #didyouknow #cheese ♬ original sound – Maddie Mom + Creator
Several other online resources support the stances of the “no mold club” like Healthline, which printed an extensive list of various cheeses and the recommended limits for keeping them refrigerated upon opening before they go bad.
Soft cheeses, like Brie, tend to expire more quickly, the outlet states, which means that you’re not going to want to keep that feta or fresh mozzarella longer than a week upon opening.
A harder cheese like Swiss should reportedly be fine for three to four weeks in your refrigerator, but you really shouldn’t be pushing it past that month’s time frame.
Cheshire Cheese Company also said that, depending on the type of cheese, folks can expect to keep them for up to several weeks in the fridge without having to worry about their beloved dairy foods spoiling. They added that harder cheese like parmesan can even last for several months in the refrigerator if taken care of properly.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Cabot via email for an expert cheese opinion and Maddie via TikTok comment.
