We've all seen it. The photo of the applesauce squeeze pouch that was already spoiled when someone's kid ate it. Honestly, it's not these photos and/or stories that shock or bother me. I mean, it's FOOD, it SPOILS, and sometimes you don't find out until you open it. What shocks me is the absolute ignorance that thousands of people all over social media display when they post and comment on this stuff.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for educating others through social media and I never like to hear that a child got sick. I think that it's absolutely harmless and definitely helpful to let people everywhere know what happened so that they know to look for it and test out the applesauce before feeding it to their kids. Also, I believe that retailers and manufacturers should know about these instances so that they can investigate and improve on their packaging, manufacturing and distribution practices to further avoid these instances.
Even if they do all of this, there are cases where this packaged food WILL spoil before it's expiration date. Is it because the manufacturer did something wrong? Maybe, maybe not. Is it because some retailer or distributor left the products in a less than ideal climate? Possibly. Is it because one package may have gotten a small, unnoticeable air-leak and randomly spoiled? Probably.
Are any of these reasons to completely BASH the manufacturer or retailer all over social media and start campaigns boycotting their products? I think not. I mean, do you honestly expect that there won't be instances where the food, that is so convenient for you to give to your family on the fly, will spoil before the expiration date? I hope not.
Let's take a look at the standard manufacturing process: