The foods that should not be vacuum sealed are fresh bananas, freshly cooked low acid vegetables, soft cheeses, onions, garlic, arugula, raw mushrooms, Bok Choy, Broccoli, turnips, Kale, Radish, Cauliflower, cabbage and Brussels sprouts.
Vacuum sealing raw mushrooms can accelerate the growth of bacteria such as Clostridium botulinum, which can cause botulism.
And similar to mushrooms, vacuum sealing garlic and onions can also create an environment where Clostridium botulinum thrives.
And soft cheeses, especially the raw or unpasteurized varieties of soft cheeses are also susceptible to rapid spoilage and potential bacterial growth in a vacuum sealed environment.
And freshly cooked low acid vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage can emit gases which can lead to spoilage and bag bursting when vacuum sealed.
You can keep vacuum sealed food in the freezer for 1 to 2 years and sometimes longer although the vacuum sealed food is best consumed within 6 months of freezing it as the food can start to lose it's taste and texture and may not be as enjoyable although the vacuum sealed food can remain safe for a few years after as long as it smells good and has no slimy texture, bad smell etc.
Some types of bacteria can still grow in vacuum sealed food.
While vacuum sealing does help prevent some bacteria from growing in the vacuum sealed food, it does not eliminate all risk s of bacteria growing in the food.
The bacterial growth of the food is reduced by vacuum sealing the food by removing the oxygen in which many bacteria require to grow and survive.
However some bacteria like Listeria and Clostridium botulinum can grow even in the absence of oxygen so the bacteria listeria and Clostridium botulinum can still grow in food that is vacuum sealed.
So even though your food is vacuum sealed it can still go bad, especially if it's food that requires refrigeration or being frozen.
You can help keep the food from going bad and lasting longer by freezing the vacuum sealed food.
When frozen the vacuum sealed food often lasts for a year or longer depending on the food.
It's always best to eat the vacuum sealed food within a year or less but the vacuum sealed food can remain safe to eat well past these dates.
Vacuum sealing the food removes the air and oxygen that surrounds the food, which significantly reduces the oxygen available to the food and bacteria which requires the oxygen to survive and grow.
Although vacuum sealing food, while it does extend the shelf life of the food, it doesn't eliminate all bacteria growth and some bacteria are able to grow without oxygen or in low oxygen environments.
Clostridium botulinum is a dangerous pathogen bacteria that grows at room temperature in low acid moist foods, such as meats and vegetables in an anaerobic environment which is an environment without air.