A hamburger that has been in storage for eight years is not even moldy.
Eight years ago Iltalehti’s video editor Sipe Myllyniemi spent his summer vacation in Finland.
– My sister and I were on our way to the north. We stopped at Mäkkäri in Oulu to eat, and I ordered several euro cheeseburgers, Myllyniemi recalls.
One burger was left uneaten, and it ended up in the glove compartment of the car. It was forgotten there for the rest of the trip. When Myllyniemi found it, the burger couldn’t be eaten, but instead the test flashed through the mind.
Over the course of eight years, Sipe Myllyniemi has occasionally opened the hamburger wrappers and peeked at what the burger looks like. Sipe Myllyniemi
– I had read about hamburgers that have been around for many years, so I decided to try myself to see what happens to it. It was a funny idea.
For years, Myllyniemi kept the hamburger in the wardrobe of his parents’ old room. The burger was allowed to hang out on the cupboard shelf, although it has been looked at a few times over the years.
Now, after eight years, a surprisingly good-looking hamburger was revealed from the paper roll. It has no mold and no unpleasant smell. The hamburger has dried up, so to speak.
The hamburger has dried up. It doesn’t smell or smell. The smell may be a bit musty. Sipe Myllyniemi
Iltalehti found out how it is possible.
The question was answered by the communications director of McDonald’s Finland Heli Ryänen.
At first, Ryhänen laughs that rarely does anyone keep hamburgers for years, but sometimes it can happen by accident.
– There is really nothing surprising about it. Mäkkäri’s rolls are toasted before serving. Toasting dries out the bun. Under the right conditions, the bread dries and stays dry for years, Ryhänen says.
Eight-year-old euro cheese no longer looks attractive. Sipe Myllyniemi
Ryänen continues that the hamburger’s beef patties are 100 percent beef. The meat also dries in suitable conditions and keeps well.
– Especially the hamburger and cheeseburger dry out well, because they have no sauce, no lettuce or tomato.
Ryänen reminds that drying has once been a method of preserving bread and meat. It has decreased, but there are still dried meats and breadcrumbs in stores.
But what does Myllyniemi plan to do with the end-of-life burger in the age of hamburgers?
– You can’t get rid of it. I’ve said flat out that I’ll bequeath it some day in the future, Myllyniemi grins.