Hello, I'm an expert in food science and safety. Let's dive into your question about the shelf life of white sugar.

White sugar, or sucrose, is a product that has an incredibly long shelf life due to its low moisture content and natural preservative properties. Under normal conditions, white sugar does not spoil or go bad. However, it can change in quality over time. The main factors that can affect the quality of sugar are moisture, temperature, and exposure to air.

When sugar is exposed to moisture, it can clump together. While this doesn't make the sugar unsafe to eat, it can be less convenient and aesthetically pleasing. To prevent clumping, it's best to store sugar in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

Temperature fluctuations can also cause sugar to grain or become more crystalline. This is a physical change and not a sign of spoilage, but it can alter the texture of the sugar.

Exposure to air can lead to a process called oxidation, which can cause the sugar to darken and develop an off-taste over a very long period of time. This is not common and would take many years to occur under normal storage conditions.

In summary, white sugar doesn't go bad in the traditional sense of spoilage, but it can degrade in quality over time due to environmental factors.

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Even though the sugar gets dry and hard, it is not harmful and is still safe to consume. ... There is nothing in sugar that "goes bad" in a traditional sense. Brown sugar will harden over time, but is still edible if softened. The shelf life of powdered and granulated sugar is indeffinite.read more >>