Is it safe to eat a 48-year-old Christmas pudding?
This was the question Channel 4’s Food Unwrapped posed to scientists at the University of Nottingham and the resounding answer was….yes it is!
The pudding - as old as the moon landings - had been made by a university colleague’s great aunt in 1969.
Dr Tania Perehinec took samples and put them through rigorous laboratory testing at the university's Sutton Bonington campus to see whether there were any signs of harmful bacteria including E.coli or salmonella.
The results showed that no bacteria grew from the pudding, which was also clear of any yeast or mould.
Tania explained: “Bacteria can’t survive in a ‘dry’ Christmas pudding like this one. Although there is moisture, there's a difference between food appearing moist to eat and the availability of water which microbes need to grow.
“The moisture in the food might be because of the fat or sugars that are in there, but the water may be bound up with food components making it unavailable for bacteria to grow.
"It is also important to remember that our Christmas pudding had been cooked by boiling for several hours and as such the viable bacteria would also have been killed in the cooking process. In addition it was tightly sealed from the air and stored in a cool place. For commercially produced puddings it is recommend to adhere to use by dates and storage conditions appropriate to the product.”
The results were screened on Food Unwrapped Does Christmas earlier this week.
The pudding was cooked for 15 minutes in a pressure cooker before TV presenter Dr Helen Lawal had a taste. And whist the results were clear that it was perfectly safe to eat, opinion was divided on whether or not it tasted good.
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