Does Coffee Go Bad?
Coffee isn’t a food necessity but, if a large-scale disaster were to hit, I wouldn’t want to go without it (and my family certainly wouldn’t want to deal with me going through coffee withdrawal!).
So, I’ve made sure to have a large stockpile of coffee on hand. Luckily, storing coffee long term is actually pretty easy.
Here’s what you need to know to store coffee for 25+ years.
Contrary to common belief, coffee can go bad. Like other beans, coffee contains natural oils. When these are exposed to air, the oils start to oxidize and eventually go rancid. Even when the coffee is stored away from oxygen, the coffee beans can still go rancid because of compounds that are produced from the roasting process.
Luckily, it usually takes a very long time for coffee beans to go rancid. This is why many people and even coffee manufacturers say it is safe to use expired coffee. However, long before the coffee goes rancid, it will lose its taste and aroma due to “gassing off”. This stale coffee is still safe to consume but isn’t nearly as enjoyable to drink.
Before we get into storage conditions, it’s important to note that certain types of coffee will naturally last longer than others.
Grinding breaks down coffee beans so it has more surface area. This means that more of the coffee will be exposed to air, causing it to gas off and oxidize faster. The coffee should still be safe to consume for several years after its “best by” date but may have already lost a lot of its flavor.
Whole coffee beans will last a lot longer than ground coffee. However, because the roasting process uses heat, it triggers a chemical reaction which causes the natural oils to start breaking down. Like with ground coffee, roasted whole beans will still eventually go bad.
Instant coffee is made by freeze drying. The process removes all moisture from the coffee and creates a very shelf-stable product. Unopened, instant coffee can last for years or decades without any special storage. Once you open instant coffee, it can still last for years – but there’s a big potential issue.
Was opened, instant coffee will start to absorb moisture from the air. In humid areas (like Florida), the coffee can get very wet and start to go bad quickly. If you want to store instant coffee long term, either keep it in its original packaging or repackage it in an air-tight container. Ideally, you should package it on a low-humidity day.
Green coffee beans haven’t been roasted, so their natural oils are more stable. Because of this, green coffee beans can last for a very long time and are best for long-term storage.
You’ll want to store them like other dry beans – in a food storage container, preferably without oxygen, and away from heat and light.
If you want to storage coffee long term, you’ll need to protect it from oxygen, light, moisture and heat. Here are some of the best ways to store coffee so it lasts years or even decades.
Coffee has very little moisture in it. Because of this, you don’t have to worry about it getting freezer burned. It will stay fresh for years in the freezer.
There is one potential issue about storing coffee in the freezer though: it can absorb smells from other items. If you keep your coffee next to leftover steaks, for example, the coffee can get a funky aroma.
To prevent this, make sure you store coffee in sealed non-permeable bags (won’t let gasses through). Some coffee already comes in these bags (the metal-looking bags) and can go straight in the freezer. Once you remove the coffee beans from the freezer, make sure you let them get to room temperature before opening. Otherwise they will absorb humidity and start to go bad.
Once you’ve opened a bag of coffee, put it in air-tight containers. This isn’t the ideal solution for coffee because there will still be oxygen in the container. However, it will help slow down the oxidation and gassing-off process. If you have a large amount of coffee beans, you could even store them in buckets with gamma lids.
Good-quality coffee comes in vacuum-sealed packaging. This packaging helps protect against oxidation. You can also vacuum seal bulk coffee beans or open packages of coffee to keep it fresh longer.
Note that coffee beans and grounds have air inside of them. Vacuum sealing will only remove air around the coffee. Home vacuum sealer bags are also semi porous and will eventually allow coffee aromas to escape. So, while this is a better method than storing coffee in opened packages, the coffee will still go stale after a couple years.
Nitrogen flushing is a method of removing oxygen from coffee packaging. Very good-quality brands of coffee use this method. It is done immediately after roasting the coffee, so the coffee is stored at its maximum freshness.
Because coffee beans “gas off” after roasting (air from inside the beans moves outwards), nitrogen-flushed bags would explode if left to sit long enough. To prevent this, manufacturers will put a one-way valve on the bags to let the gases escape. By comparison, vacuum-sealed coffee is usually packaged after the beans have had a chance to gas-off; no valve is required but the beans aren’t as fresh when packaged.
Simply by choosing nitrogen-flushed coffee (look for the one-way valve on the bag), you’ll get a fresher product that will store longer.
Oxygen absorbers are little packet of iron. The iron grabs oxygen molecules. If you put oxygen absorber packets in an air-tight container with coffee, the packets will remove virtually all oxygen and keep the coffee fresh. Read more about oxygen absorbers for food storage here.
The best long-term storage method for coffee is sealed Mylar bags with oxygen absorbers. Mylar is a metallic-looking material which is impervious to gases. When you put an oxygen absorber into a bag and then seal it, the coffee is protected from oxygen, humidity, and light. Freeze-dried coffee can last for 25+ years this way.
If you want to store coffee beans in Mylar though, there’s an important caveat: they must be unroasted green coffee beans. The reason for this is because the roasting process causes the natural oils in the coffee to start breaking down. By contrast, green coffee beans won’t deteriorate and can last 20+ years in Mylar bags with oxygen absorbers.
Read more about storing food in Mylar bags here.
https://www.fbd.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/fbd-expiration-guide.pdf
https://www.utahfoodbank.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/05_-_Shelf_Life_for_Consumer.pdf
Want to stockpile your own food but not sure where to start? Download the Ebook.
You’ll learn about the methods you can use at home to store food for up to 25 years.
This is the information you need to build comprehensive food storage for a rainy day.
1st time at your site. Very impressed with your list of articles. Looks like I will be a regular.
The coffee I buy is in Mylar bags, but not vented. They normally have air in the bags, not sealed tight. I’ve been gradually increasing my supply and at about 40-50 pounds now and haven’t had an issue with it going bad. I had been thinking of a adding an O2 absorber to them, but it appears that you are saying no to this for roasted coffee. Am I correct? My coffee stays at a pretty constant 55 degrees until summer and gets a little warmer. If I store in the freezer, would it be best to use an 02 absorber to store in freezer? Your thought would be appreciated. I have been wanting to increase my coffee supply.
I possibly
Coffee in good packaging (even if it isn’t nitrogen-flushed) will last at least a couple years. I’d say to stockpile a maximum of how much you can rotate through in 2 years time. If you want to stockpile more than 2-years’ worth of coffee, then it should be green coffee beans. These you store with O2 absorbers in Mylar. Be warned that the roasting process has a STRONG smell.
I purchase fresh roasted coffee from a local business. My plan was to purchase a year’s supply and repackage in Mylar bags with O2. However, after reading this article, I am not sure if that is wise as it states to only store unroasted green coffee beans in this manner. Please advise. Thank you!
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Does Coffee Go Bad?
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