Mini refrigerators are a great space saver and appeal to truck drivers, trailer owners, office workers and college students. Although the capacity for food hardly compares to a regular refrigerator, the need to save space makes the choice easy to make. As with a regular fridge, the same food safety principles apply to a mini fridge.

The refrigerator temperature should still be at 40 degrees or below and the freezer at 0 degrees or lower. Remember, foods need air circulation to stay cold in a refrigerator, so don’t over pack with too many foods.

Keep the refrigerator closed as much as possible and don’t store perishable foods like milk and eggs in the door; place them towards the center of the refrigerator instead. I like to store canned beverages in the door.

Refrigerate all perishables including leftovers within two hours (one hour if it is over 90 degrees outside).

Because the foods may be closer together, use food containers or wraps to prevent moisture loss or absorption of odors.

Maintain a clean refrigerator, and discard foods that are molding or have been kept too long. As a rule, leftovers should be consumed within three to four days.

Meats should be kept on the bottom shelf in a pan to catch drips, with produce on the next shelf and ready to eat foods on the top shelf.

To learn more about food safety at home, contact your local Extension office, visit fightbac.org or eatright.org, or download Is My Food Safe? in the app store on your phone.

Julie Buck, EdD, RDN, is a registered dietitian, who is employed as a family and consumer sciences educator at the University of Idaho Extension, Bingham County. She can be reached at 208-785-8060 or jhbuck@uidaho.edu.