 While the short shelf life of fresh meat does not pose a significant problem when access to it is easy and supply is abundant, in times of scarcity and famine, or when the meat must be carried over long voyages, it spoils very quickly.In such circumstances the usefulness of preserving foods containing nutritional value for transport and storage is obvious.Curing can significantly extend the life of meat before it spoils, by making it inhospitable to the growth of spoilage microbes.