SAVANNAH, Ga. — As residents of the Coastal Empire and Lowcountry brace for potential winter weather this weekend, it’s important to consider food safety during power outages, a concern that remains relevant year-round.

The Clemson Cooperative Extension offers practical guidelines to ensure food safety whenever electricity is lost.

To preserve the contents of your freezer, keep the door shut. A fully stocked freezer can maintain safe temperatures for approximately two days, while one that is only half-filled may preserve food safely for about a day.

If your freezer isn’t packed, swiftly consolidate items together, placing meats and poultry on one side to prevent cross-contamination from any thawed juices. Avoid opening the freezer to retain the cold air.

For your refrigerator, items can typically remain safe for four to six hours. However, if the internal temperature exceeds 40°F for more than two hours, it’s best to discard the contents. Keeping the door closed will help maintain the cooler temperature inside.

Never taste food to see if it is ‘safe.’ Bacteria can grow on foods that look and smell fine.

The following foods should be fine at room temperature for a few days:

• Butter or margarine
• Cheeses
• Fruits and vegetables
• Opened jars of vinegar-based salad dressings, jellies, relishes, taco sauces, barbecue sauces, mustards, ketchups, olives and peanut butter
• Fruit juices
• Herbs and spices
• Fruit pies, bread, rolls and muffins
• Cakes (with the exception of cream cheese-frosted cakes or cream-filled cakes)
• Flour and nuts