Much as it is said that even a blind squirrel finds a nut, California, the State placing Proposition 65 labels on all our products, has just passed a new food labeling law, California Assembly Bill 660, prohibiting the use of “Sell By” dates on food. Good squirrel because, in this instance, it is a good nut.
The legislation, while prohibiting “Sell By” dates and equally ambiguous “Expires On” and “Freshest By,” requires,
“(1) “BEST if Used by” or “BEST if Used or Frozen by” to indicate the quality date of the food item.
(2) “USE by” or “USE by or Freeze by” to indicate the safety date of the food item.”
It is designed to reduce consumer confusion surrounding all those dates on foods. [1]
Food Date Labeling And Food Waste
With the end of WWI, food rationing, and the return of significant consumer demand, encrypted food date labels began appearing on US foods. Their purpose was to assist stores in rotating stock and selling near-spoiling food goods. With the rise of consumerism in the 70s, those food dates became “transparent.” Perhaps that is a bit of hyperbole. Without further consumer education, the initial iteration of “Sell By,” the date of manufacture, was confusing, with consumers interpreting it as a “do not use” date. The manufacturers saw no need to intervene because society’s food waste was their increased sales.
There are varying estimates of our food waste; the commonly cited statistic of 38% of the food we bring home being wasted comes from USDA surveys in 2010. Other estimates suggest that 20% might be more reflective of food waste due to misunderstanding “Sell by” as “Throw Out by.” From an environmental perspective, much of that food waste ends up in landfills, producing methane, one of the more potent greenhouse gases. While landfills account for less methane production than agricultural, fossil fuel, or land sources, overall “food waste” methane nonetheless contributes about 10%. The USDA puts the costs of that food to a family of four at $1500. That is a lot to lose over a misunderstood food label placed to improve consumer habits.
What’s In A Name?
Unless you are looking at baby formula, there are no federal regulations regarding those “open date” labels on food. The States left to their own devices and special interests, may require no labels or place requirements on labels, including how long they are “fresh.” An even more disquieting truth is that “Best by” and “Use by” are equally uncertainly defined.
- “Sell by” – you now know this is primarily an inventory control date and has no practical meaning in your decision-making.
- “Best by” –is a term related to a subjective quality of the food, its taste. According to the USDA, manufacturers consider the length of time and holding temperatures along the supply chain, as well as the characteristics of the food and its packaging. While that seems scientific and perhaps is partially grounded in food and storage science, in the end, “Best by” is solely a reputation guarantee. If you find a food brand has an “off taste” before that “Best by” date, you will likely not purchase that product again.
- “Use by” – this is commonly considered a safety term when eating a food after this date makes you ill. But before being assured, note this simple statement by the USDA, “Except for infant formula, dates are not an indicator of the product’s safety…” To be fair, food manufacturers try to determine when a food has gone rogue.
No food lasts forever. The usable life of food depends on various factors like moisture, acidity, sugar, salt content, and preservation methods. Food companies can extend shelf life by heat-treating, irradiating, or adding preservatives and, in so doing, creating processed or even ultra-processed foods – but no signaler of nutrition virtue would consider eating an ultra-processed or irradiated food, would they?. To determine safe shelf life, companies may conduct microbial challenge studies, adding harmful microorganisms to products and testing them under different conditions, using these results with an added but arbitrary “safety” margin to provide a “Use by” date. Companies can use mathematical models to calculate a date or perform a “static test,” where the product is stored as recommended and sampled periodically for safety and quality. Again, with either calculation in hand, the company subtracts an arbitrary safety margin to provide their “Use by” date.
Of course, you may also apply your senses and experience. Visible mold, off smells, and a bulging can are all signs that the “Use by” date is long past. Unfortunately, as the continued reports of food poisoning appear in the press, our senses are not the most tuned instruments, and foods that will make us ill look and smell fine.
In 2019, the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service issued the following statement:
“To reduce consumer confusion and wasted food, FSIS recommends that food manufacturers and retailers that apply product dating use a “Best if Used By” date. Research shows that this phrase conveys to consumers that the product will be of best quality if used by the calendar date shown.”
It has taken five years for the first State to heed that recommendation. California’s ban on "Sell By" dates is a step in the right direction for reducing consumer confusion and, hopefully, food waste. By providing clearer, more meaningful labels, consumers can make informed choices—because the more we know, the less we throw.
[1] The bill limits “refrigerated shelf life to no more than 30 calendar days from packaging to consumption, except the time the product is maintained frozen, or the original safety date—whichever occurs first.”
Sources: California Passes First-of-its-Kind Legislation Standardizing 'Best By' Dates on Food; Bans 'Sell By' Food Safety Magazine
How Misunderstood Expiration Dates Contribute to America’s Food Waste Problem
California Just Became the First State to Ban Sell-By Dates Food and Wine
Food Product Dating USDA
How do food manufacturers pick those dates on their product packaging – and what do they mean? The Conversation
Chuck Dinerstein, MD, MBA
Director of Medicine
Dr. Charles Dinerstein, M.D., MBA, FACS is Director of Medicine at the American Council on Science and Health. He has over 25 years of experience as a vascular surgeon.
