Can dried fruit keep bread fresh longer? Prunes, raisins, and dates contain natural sugars and acids that may slow mold growth. This project tests whether mixing fruit paste into bread extends its shelf life. You get four freshly baked loaves from the same bakery on the same day. One loaf is plain. The other three contain prune, raisin, or date paste. You store all four in a cupboard and check each day for mold with a magnifying glass. Plain bread showed mold by day five. The fruit-filled loaves lasted two to three days longer before mold appeared.