What is The Best Temperature for Your Refrigerator and Freezer

We keep food in the refrigerator and freezer to keep them fresh and edible for a long time. Lower temperature than the environment keep the food fresh for long by preventing bacterial growth in the food items. It is important to store foods in the refrigerator at the proper temperature. If foods are not stored in the refrigerator at the proper temperature, then foods will not be fresh anymore, even inside the refrigerator and bacterial growth inside the food could lead to serious food poisoning.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends to keep the refrigerator temperature at or below 40° F (4° C). The freezer temperature should be 0° F (-18° C). These recommended temperature helps to prevent rapid bacterial growth in food items keeping food fresh for long. Bacteria and viruses are the most common cause of food poisoning. Bacteria take the nutrition and reproduce by dividing itself into two. Bacterial growth is very much influenced by temperature. In proper temperature the growth becomes exponential even in a short period of time. Same goes for fungus. By eating contaminated food, people get sick. There are over 250 different pathogens that can cause foodborne illness. So maintaining a proper temperature to keep food fresh inside the refrigerator is a serious matter that should not be overlooked.

Refrigerator controllers or temperature regulators don’t show the actual temperature inside the cabin of the refrigerator and freezer. So it is hard to know the temperature inside. Some of the flagship refrigerators from different brand shows the temperature but it is hard to believe that data. But you can often use a thermometer to get the temperature of the refrigerator cabin. Keep the thermometer inside the cabin for a couple of minutes and read the reading. If the temperature is greater than the temperature limit stated above, then adjust the temperature using the regulator.