I wrote an article explaining whether it’s okay to cut the mold off cheese and eat the non-moldy part. The answer is mixed so you should read the entire article for the details. But, when it comes to bread, the answer is simple and clear-cut. Can you cut the mold off bread and eat the clean part? No, you cannot.
The answer is absolutely not. The visible part of mold is only a small part of it. By the time you see the green stuff, the mold has already spread throughout the porous bread in a vast network of spindly tendrils. And if one slice of bread has visible mold on it, the rest of it is surely infected so you can’t eat the other slices either.
The part of mold you can see is called sporangia. Each sporangium released thousands of mold spores, spreading the fungus further. If you see sporangia on your bread, millions of microscopic mold spores would have been released, spreading all over the loaf.
I am aware that some few experts say there is an exception for sliced bread and that if you inspect the slices far away from the moldy ones, and you find nothing wrong, you can go ahead and keep those slices.
I am also aware that many people routinely eat bread after cutting off the mold. I have two things to say about this: 1. It’s up to you. 2. Those people have ingested spores. They may have never felt sick, but their digestion could be affected by the wrong mold, and it only takes one particularly toxic mold to teach a person a lesson, if they are receptive to it.
Some mold is indeed perfectly safe, and even nutritious, to eat, like the mold grown on blue cheese. But, when your bread gets moldy, you have no way of knowing what kind of mold is growing on it.
Some mold is toxic due to the presence of mycotoxins and will make you very sick if you ingest it. Also, these mycotoxins can damage your digestive system by altering the makeup of beneficial microbial flora in your gut, leading to long-term digestive issues.
It is unlikely you would die from eating moldy bread if you are otherwise healthy, but it could cause digestive upset and other very unpleasant symptoms. And, if you are allergic to mold, you could go into anaphylactic shock, which could be life-threatening. Those who are allergic should also avoid smelling bread to see if it’s moldy.
Do not think you can identify the type of mold by its color. The color of a mold can change throughout its life cycle. If even one slice of bread or one part of a loaf of bread is moldy, you need to throw away the entire loaf. Some types of mold are harmless to eat but can still trigger allergies.
Rhizopus Stolonifer – A Common Bread Mold
One of the most common molds we find on bread, Rhizopus stolonifer, is one of the most dangerous. This is the familiar blue-green and very fuzzy mold with dark patches belonging to a group of molds called mucormycetes. Although this is rare, it can sometimes cause a deadly reaction called Mucormycosis (formerly called zygomycosis) for those who are immuno-compromised.
Long-term exposure to mycotoxins can have serious health consequences, including increased cancer risk. This is especially true of certain Aspergillus molds. Aspergillus flavus, a food mold that grows mostly on peanuts and corn but also barley and wheat, produced mycotoxins called aflatoxins. These are particularly dangerous to human health.
What About Mold on Other Foods?
I’ve already mentioned cheese and linked to my article about moldy cheese. Some of the guidelines in that article may clue you into some general rules.
Basically, you cannot ‘save’ any kind of soft foods or liquid beverage once you see mold. Liquid beverages probably need no explanation but beverages often affected are fruit juices. Soft foods include bread, soft cheese like cream cheese, jams, jellies, syrups, sour cream, yogurt, cake, luncheon meats, hot dogs, and soft fruits and vegetables.
If you absolutely insist on keeping the clean-looking part of bread that has mold on it because you don’t want to waste it, you do so at your own risk. But the facts are not on your side so do not judge other people for being squeamish and cautious about it.