Maximizing Functionality With Pantry Can Organization

Sort The Pantry Shelves Front To Back By Expiration Date

One professional organizer pro-tip that our clients love is taking the organizing categories for canned goods a step further. 

Now what we’ve put all the like-items together, categorized them by either type of food, ethnicity or another categorization, we now to sort them front-to-back by expiration date putting the canned goods that will expire the soonest in the front so that you will remember to use them.

Remember that saying, out of sight out of mind. Well it works in the inverse too. “What’s insight, is front of mind.”

Consider Shelf Dividers

Cans come in all different shapes + sizes. Some are small + some are rather large so finding a solution that meets all your needs all the time can be a challenge. 

For this reason, when it comes to can organization in the pantry we prefer shelf dividers because typically there will be plenty of space vertically that the size of the cans becomes irrelevant. Not to mention, there’s enough depth to the shelf (front-to-back) that we can either keep them all on the shelf or create a tiered shelf system for the canned food.

Label The Shelves Or The Shelf Dividers

If you’re thinking about labels then you will LOVE this.

When it comes to canned food storage + maintaining your organized pantry — labeling, is not step one but it is a step along the way. 

What we tell our clients is that when we’re actually in the labeling process we’ve already made a lot of decisions around the things that you want + need but also the things you don’t. 

And choosing labels isn’t merely to make the organizing system look “prettier.” Sure, that’s a perk of pantry can organization but labeling is committing to making the organizing system function more efficiently for the long haul. 

Organizing Labels, strengthen the organizing systems we’ve already set up. In most cases, but not all, without labeling the system breakdowns over time because either we personally become fatigued + don’t maintain it or others don’t know what methods to follow.

Well friend, there you have it…everything you need to know about pantry can organization!

And don’t forget, if you’re in the preliminary planning stages of your next project, let’s chat. 

Psst… Check out our FREE Video Course: 4 Days To A More Beautiful + Functional Home