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How to Store Chocolate: Temperature, Bloom and Shelf Life
Keep chocolate somewhere cool and dry, away from strong smells, at 14 to 21°C, in its wrapper and out of direct sunlight. That is the range on the storage sheet for our 85 g milk and dark bars. Chocolate melts between 30 and 32°C, under body temperature, so a coat pocket wins.
Two of our bars keep well in an ordinary cupboard:
The milk bar's sugars occur naturally in the milk. The dark bar's come from the cocoa. Nothing is added on top of either.
Why does chocolate melt in your pocket?
A pocket runs warmer than chocolate can take. The melting point of chocolate falls between 30 and 32°C, while the human body runs at 37°C, according to the US Library of Congress. A jacket pocket or a car dashboard sits well above that line.
Cocoa butter sets that limit. The tempered crystals in a bar melt well below body heat.
What temperature should chocolate be stored at?
Our storage sheet for the two 85 g bars above gives 14 to 21°C as the ideal. The same line asks for a cool, dry place, away from odours and protected from direct sunlight.
Several of our lines give a humidity limit as well as a temperature. The coated chocolate buttons ask for the original packaging at 16 to 20°C with relative humidity under 70 percent. Our chocolate spreads ask for an odour free environment at 17 to 23°C, protected from air and light.
The table copies each range straight from the product's storage sheet.
| Product | On the storage sheet | Shelf life |
|---|---|---|
| No added sugar milk and dark chocolate bars 85 g | Cool, dry, away from odours, out of direct sunlight. Ideal 14 to 21°C | 24 months |
| No added sugar coated milk chocolate buttons 40 g | Original packaging, 16 to 20°C, humidity under 70 percent | 24 months |
| No added sugar hazelnut and chocolate spread 350 g | Odour free, protected from air and light, 17 to 23°C | 16 months |
| Sugar free lemon and cream sweets 75 g | Cool and dry, ideally 15°C, 25°C maximum | 24 months |
| Sugar free gummy bears 75 g | Cool and dry, 20 to 25°C, humidity 55 to 65 percent | 24 months |
| No added sugar apricot muesli bar 30 g | Dry, up to 25°C | 15 months |
| No added sugar strawberry jam with chia seeds 230 g | Dry, out of direct sunlight, refrigerate once opened | 24 months |
Every no added sugar product above contains naturally occurring sugars from its own ingredients: milk, fruit or cocoa. None of them has sugar added on top.
Should chocolate go in the fridge?
GOV.UK puts a domestic fridge at 5°C or below, far under the 14 to 21°C our 85 g chocolate bars ask for, so save the fridge for days when the room is too warm. A fridge also holds the smell of everything else on the shelf. Take a cold bar into a warm kitchen and moisture settles on the surface, which dulls the finish.
In a heatwave the fridge still beats a 30°C worktop. Seal the bar in an airtight box first, the step most people skip. Then let it come back to room temperature inside the box before you open it.
Why does chocolate turn pale, and can you still eat it?
The chalky grey film is fat bloom, which the Institute of Food Technologists traces to two causes.
Fat bloom happens when fat migrates to the surface of chocolate as a result of storing it at high temperatures or exposing it to extreme fluctuations in temperature.
Institute of Food Technologists, IFT Food Facts: fat bloom
The same source notes that chocolate has a long shelf life and is safe to eat, though a badly stored bar may not taste the same or keep the same creamy texture. Since heat and temperature swings both cause bloom, a cupboard that sits at 16°C all week treats chocolate better than a fridge it travels in and out of.
How long does chocolate keep?
Our 85 g milk and dark bars carry a 24 month shelf life. The chocolate hazelnut spreads run to 16 months and the muesli bars to 15. Those dates assume the bar has been kept in the storage sheet range; one that spends August on a sunny shelf will not eat as it should by the end.
Chocolate wrappers carry a best before date, which GOV.UK separates clearly from a use by date.
Use-by dates on food labels tell you when the food is no longer safe to eat.
GOV.UK, Understanding food labelling
On the same guidance, a best before date marks when quality starts to drop. Safety is the use by date's job.
Maltitol is what sweetens these bars. It is a polyol, a sweetener used in place of sugar. There is a full explainer on maltitol if you want the detail.
Frequently asked questions
Can you freeze chocolate?
You can, but it is rarely worth it. Freezing takes a bar far below the 14 to 21°C our 85 g bars ask for, and the journey back up brings condensation onto the surface. If you do freeze it, wrap it airtight, then let it reach room temperature still sealed.
Is chocolate with a white film still good?
The pale film is fat bloom, which the Institute of Food Technologists attributes to storage at high temperatures or to extreme swings in temperature. The same source says chocolate is safe to eat and long lasting, though a badly stored bar may lose some of its taste and texture.
How should chocolate be stored in summer?
Move it to the coolest, darkest cupboard you have, away from any window that catches afternoon sun. Our 85 g bars ask for 14 to 21°C. If the kitchen holds above 25°C for days, an airtight box in the fridge is the better option, opened only once the box has come back to room temperature.
Chocolate bought in September for Christmas presents spends three months in whichever cupboard you pick today, so pick the cool one.