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Why you should never keep milk in the fridge door

Alice Sholl and Hannah Millington
·2 min read
Milk fridge door. (Getty Images)
Have you always stored your milk in the fridge door? (Getty Images)

With Marks & Spencer scrapping 'use by' dates on its milk to prevent it being thrown away too quickly, more people are thinking about the best way to store it.

The supermarket will now label its pints with 'best before' dates instead (relating to its quality), encouraging shoppers to use their own judgement about its safety.

This follows Morrisons doing the same last year, meaning the old-fashioned 'sniff test', really is on the rise again.

So, if you want to ensure your milk stays fresh for as long as possible, here's what you should never do.

Read more: M&S scraps use by dates on milk and tells shoppers to decide for themselves – The Telegraph, 2-min read

Why you shouldn't store milk in the fridge door

a close-up of bottled milk, lying on a shelf in the refrigerator door, against the background of products, fruits, vegetables, cottage cheese, eggs and yogurt
The inside door is the warmest part of the fridge. (Getty images)

The fridge door seems like the most natural place to keep your milk – you want it on hand for tea and breakfast, and since it’s upright, it won’t leak either. It's what most of us seem to do automatically.

But it turns out we’re going to have to find a way around that problem, as the inside of the door really isn’t the best place for the white stuff.

That’s because the fridge door is actually the warmest place in your fridge, and keeping something like milk – which goes off easily – there will mean it sours faster.

The best place to keep it is in fact on on the lower and middle shelves, suggests a Good Housekeeping guide. The same goes for other dairies such as cheese, yoghurt and butter, too.

Instead, you should put foods that have natural preservatives in the fridge door – like jams, condiments and juice.

Read more: Is it safe to eat food past its expiry date? – Yahoo Life UK, 3-min read

Watch: Four condiments you should always keep in the fridge

And when it comes to the other shelves, the bottom one should contain your raw meat and fish, as it’s the coldest part. Doing so also minimises the risk of cross-contamination (spreading bacteria), as it stops it dripping on to anything below it, or touching something else.

The upper shelves should be kept for foods that won’t need cooking, like leftovers and deli meats, while finally, the drawers are where your vegetables and salads should go.

Well, at least we’ve been getting that last one right.