A German student who received a tub of lard as part of the U.S. food aid programme to Germany after the Second World War, kept hold of the canned fat for 64 years. After keeping the lard as part of his emergency food supply, 87-year-old pensioner Hans Feldmeier decided now was the time to test if the product was still fit for human consumption.
Feldmeier, a retired pharmacist, took the lard to be tested by the office of agriculture, food safety and fisheries in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the Telegraph
reported. Food safety agent Frerk Feldhusen declared the aged food item had a "slight lack of smell and taste," yet "all in all, given its level of freshness and its material composition, the product is assessed as satisfactory." (Huffington Post
Having received the stamp of approval ensuring the lard was still edible, Feldmeier finally tasted the contents of the tin which he complemented with black bread.
The tub of lard in question was one of millions of tins of "Swifts Bland Lard" according to German paper The Local
. It comprised part of a food package that contained packet noodles, powdered milk and sugar. The food safety agents attributed the extraordinary shelf life of the lard to the durability of the U.S. can. Feldmeier requested that his beautiful tin be returned to him, which it was, minus the remarkably well preserved contents.