Entry bubble Deciphering Food Expiration Dates

By: Nancy | February 21, 2008 | Category: Health

supermarket dairy departmentI couldn't make out the words from the next room, but the tone of my coworker Arlene's voice on my answering machine sounded pretty urgent. I rewound and listened:

"Girl, you HAVE to blog about this. I was in the store today and was thinking about expiration dates on food. There's the 'sell by' date. The 'use by' date. And the plain old expiration date. HOW CONFUSING!"

I'm with ya, Arlene. Apart from giving everything the sniff test before venturing a sip or a nibble, how do you know what's truly out of date and what's ok? This calls for some definitions.

Sell by/pull by date: This is the date that stores pay attention to. If an item hasn't sold by this date, they're supposed to pull it from the shelves. Don't be afraid to buy something on or right before its 'sell by' date; it'll still be good for a while if it's stored properly. How long? That depends on the item. More on that in a minute.

Best if used before/by: Until this date, your food's guaranteed to be at peak freshness if it's been properly stored. After that date, it'll still be safe to consume for a while but the quality won't be as high. So your OJ won't have that "fresh-squeezed taste" anymore. And if you've ever taken a swig of diet soda after the 'best by' date stamped on the bottle, you're familiar with the unmistakable taste of decomposing artificial sweetener. Yum.

Expiration date: This is your food's last hurrah. If you haven't consumed it by this date, toss it. It could make you sick if you try eating or drinking it.

Ok, now how long can you safely keep eating those foods beyond their 'sell by' and 'best by' dates? Got a couple charts for you:

The Cold Storage chart covers eggs and meat and the Foods Purchased Refrigerated chart covers juice, milk-based dairy products, fish and canned goods. Since most food dating is optional—only baby food and formula are required by federal regulations to have "use by" dates—consider printing out those charts and keeping them handy in your kitchen or pantry.

I did a quick tour of my fridge using the charts, and came across a carton of yogurt that I should have eaten last fall. Oops! What's the oldiest-moldiest thing you've ever found in your fridge at home or at work?

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