Expiration Date Confusion
"best before"
"sell by"
"use by"
"enjoy by"
"expires on"
Just a handful of the various messages that we see on food products.
So much variety.
So much confusion.
Leading to so much food waste.
Sounds like the message has finally been received:
Last week, the Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturers Association, the two biggest trade groups for retailers and grocery producers, collaborated on a new initiative designed to fight some of that confusion. That initiative sets out guidelines for simplified, standardized expiration labels on food, funneling all the current choices into two options: “use by” and “best if used by.”
“BEST If Used By” describes product quality, where the product may not taste or perform as expected but is safe to use or consume.
“USE By” applies to the few products that are highly perishable and/or have a food safety concern over time; these products should be consumed by the date listed on the package – and disposed of after that date.
Makes sense to me!
More info:
Out for now........
Matt
p.s. #1: previous MattChat post on food waste: http://matthonnold.blogspot.com/2016/12/save-food.html
p.s. #2: And what about expiration dates on medicine? Those can be critical! See: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/02/06/513254232/when-old-medicine-goes-bad
