Should you store potatoes in the fridge?

To store in the fridge or not to store in the fridge - that is the question most of us won't have considered. I have to own up and say that I've always put my potatoes in a cupboard, but you may be surprised to know that if you put them in the fridge your spuds stay fresh for three times as long compared to on the shelf.

Previously there were concerns about increased acrylamide levels (a potential carcinogen) when potatoes are stored in the fridge, but recent peer-reviewed evidence reveals that this is not the case.

It found that refrigeration does not increase acrylamide levels compared to room temperature storage. This advice is supported by research overseen by the Committee on the Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment and reviewed by the Food Standards Agency, ensuring the evidence is as robust as it can be.

As a result the Food Standards Agency now advises that you can safely store raw potatoes in the fridge. And to help all food and veg last longer, you should also set your fridge temperature at below 5 degrees Celsius, based on advice from the climate action NGO, WRAP.

Doing this significantly extends the freshness of your potatoes, allowing them to last three times longer compared with a traditional cool, dry place.

However, I'll leave you with one final statistic and a question. Currently, 180,000 tonnes of fresh potatoes are wasted annually in the UK according to WRAP because they aren't used in time, so this small change can make a massive difference to your food wastage.

However the question that I was recently asked on social media is whether storing them in the fridge makes them taste worse and means that you'll throw them away anyway.

I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has tried this, drop me a line at dominic@behaviourchangenetwork.com >>> Food Waste Masterclass: if you want to find out more about food waste, join my food waste masterclass starting on 6 June.