Are canned foods that have frozen during storage safe to eat?
Freezing does not cause food spoilage unless the seal or jar is damaged or broken. With commercially canned foods, the food is safe to eat if the cans are undamaged. All food that has been frozen in tin cans should be examined carefully for spoilage before use. For an extra margin of safety, boil low acid foods (meats, fish, poultry and vegetables) for 10 minutes. Discard all foods with an off color or odor. DO NOT TASTE food that looks or smells suspicious. Discard all damaged, leaking or bulged cans that have thawed. With home-canned foods, the food is safe to eat if the jars are still sealed and there is no breakage. Discard all home-canned foods from jars where the seal is broken or the jar is cracked and the food is thawed. Source of information: Food Safety Advisor Handbook (EM4895), page 216. National Center for Home Food Preservation: http://www.uga.
