Cooked bacon needs to be refrigerated, unless it is factory-cooked in an unopened package. Cooked bacon can be made shelf-stable through complicated factory processes that cannot be reproduced at home.
If a consumer purchases raw bacon and cooks it himself, this bacon should be refrigerated both before and after it is cooked. If a consumer purchases bacon that has already been cooked in the factory, he may leave the bacon out of the refrigerator as long as it remains sealed in its original packaging. Once the consumer opens the package of cooked bacon, it must be refrigerated to prevent it from spoiling.
