Food in the U.S. is often designed to last longer. Food engineers and manufacturers do this through things like preservatives, heat treatment, drying, freezing, packaging, and other methods.
The fact that some bread does not seem to mold for a very long time, for example, is an observation that unsettles plenty of consumers. It makes them wonder, what exactly is in them that makes them unperishable? But now, a woman on TikTok has added another unexpected food to the mix: baked chicken.
In her video, which has gotten over 502,400 views, Hope from the TikTok couple account @aviandhope holds up a bag of Walmart chicken that she says had been left out for a surprisingly long time.
What’s Wrong With This Walmart Chicken?
“Meat in America is FAKE!!” Hope wrote in the video’s text overlay.
“Hey, you want to see something absolutely disgusting?” she says. “This chicken is six months old.”
She picks up a Ziploc bag containing what appears to be a cooked chicken breast.
According to Hope, she bought a pack of chicken breasts after returning from India in February, baked the chicken in the oven, put it in a Ziploc bag, and accidentally left it on the counter.
“This has been on the counter for six months,” she says. “It has not rotted, it has not molded.”
Hope says she plans to keep it and see how long it takes for the chicken to change, if it ever does.
Then she breaks a piece off, showing that it looks like normal, fresh chicken breast.
“Six months old,” she says. “Do with that information what you will. Six months old. Six. Half a year.”
In the caption, Hope added, “& yes this is ‘ORGANIC’ chicken.”
How Long Is Cooked Chicken Good For?
According to the USDA, cooked chicken should be used within three to four days when it is kept refrigerated at 40°F or less. The agency also notes that refrigeration slows bacterial growth, but does not stop it.
That means chicken left on a counter for months is not safe to eat just because it looks the same.
As for why Hope’s chicken did not appear to mold, there could be several reasons.
One possibility may have something to do with antimicrobial rinses used during processing. In poultry processing, manufacturers sometimes spray, rinse, dip, or chill chicken carcasses and parts in water containing approved antimicrobials. One common antimicrobial is peracetic acid, for example.
But the chicken’s “normal” appearance could also have to do with the bag, the fact that it was cooked, the temperature in the kitchen, how much moisture it had, and whether it dried out instead of molding.
BroBible has reached out to Hope via TikTok messages and Walmart via contact form for comment.
People Are Familiar With This Type of Story
In the comments, viewers shared their own food-preservation horror stories.
“I still have an apple pie from april 2020,” one commenter wrote. “Not a lick of mold. I’m keeping it to see what happens.”
Another said the video made them rethink where they buy food.
“That’s why we all should be buying from our local farms and growing our own veggies,” they wrote.
Someone else said they previously worked in chicken processing and did not think the “organic” label meant as much as people assume.
“As someone who worked in chicken processing plants, there is NO DIFFERENCE in organic and inorganic chicken other than the packaging,” they wrote. “There’s also no difference in the kosher or halal or ‘regular’ meat, other than the packaging. Everybody is getting the exact same thing in different clothes.”