How should food be organized on storage shelves?

Organizing food on storage shelves by cooking temperatures and frequency of use is essential for ensuring food safety and quality. This method helps to minimize the risk of cross-contamination and allows for efficient use of the food items. By storing food based on cooking temperatures, you ensure that raw items that require higher cooking temperatures are stored below items that can be cooked at lower temperatures, preventing any drips or spills that could lead to contamination. Additionally, organizing by frequency of use ensures that the items that are used most often are easily accessible, reducing the time food is left out and maintaining its safety and quality.

While color and packaging type may assist in sorting items for visual appeal or ease of identification, it does not prioritize safety. Focusing solely on expiration dates could lead to improper organization, as it does not consider safe cooking practices. Similarly, organizing only by the size of containers might create space efficiency but could compromise food safety if not aligned with safe cooking temperature practices and usage frequency. Hence, the best approach combines both food safety and functional efficiency, which is exactly what organizing by cooking temperatures and frequency of use accomplishes.