Milk shouldn't be stored in the fridge door shelf - 'avoid' warns expert

Whether it's full-fat, semi-skimmed or skimmed milk, the cow's milk should not be stored in the fridge door shelf, stated an expert.

The expert at Arla Foods Group, a Danish-Swedish multinational co-operative, revealed where you should really store milk in the fridge.

"Temperature is the key factor," the expert said. "When milk gets exposed to air it will lose its freshness quicker and go off much faster.

"The further away from the door the milk is, the more consistently chilled it will be, safe from the constantly changing temperature outside and safe from going off."

This means the best place to store milk is typically "at the back of the fridge", but you need to make sure the fridge is set to the right temperature.

"You’ll want to check that the temperature setting in your fridge is correct," the expert added. "One to four degrees Celsius is just right, not too cold and not too warm."

As for drinking milk past its use-by date, the advice is to "trust your nose and your mouth".

If you have milk leftover but are about to go away from the weekend, you don't need to worry about the milk going off.

In fact, it's possible to freeze milk (if done so before the best-before or use-by date).

Because milk expands when it's frozen, the expert at Arla Foods Group suggested: "Transfer it from the bottle or carton you bought it into a safe and airtight freezer container to prevent any milk explosions."

The expert added: "When you need the milk, be sure to let it defrost for at least 24 hours in the fridge before you drink it.

"Once the milk is defrosted, be sure to drink it all within a couple of days and don’t refreeze it."

Milk shouldn't be frozen for more than four weeks is the general advice, so it might be worth dating the container you put the milk inside of.