Stop Throwing Away Safe Food! The Ultimate Guide to Product Dating😱🤔

 When shopping at the grocery store, the dates printed on meat, poultry, and egg product labels are often the first thing consumers look for. However, there is widespread confusion about what these dates actually mean, frequently leading people to throw away perfectly safe food. Here is a comprehensive guide to understanding food product dating, how it works, and what those label phrases really signify.

What Is Food Product Dating?

Food product dating generally falls into two distinct categories:

Open Dating: A calendar date applied to a food product by either the manufacturer or the retailer. This date informs consumers how long the product will remain at its peak quality and helps stores manage how long to display the item for sale. Open dating is commonly found on perishable foods like meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products.

Closed (or Coded) Dating: A series of letters and/or numbers applied by manufacturers to identify the exact date and time of production. This code is typically used on shelf-stable products, such as cans and boxed goods.

Does Federal Law Require Product Dating?

Contrary to popular belief, federal regulations do not require product dating on food, with the sole exception of infant formula.

For meat, poultry, and egg products overseen by the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), manufacturers may choose to add dates voluntarily. However, if a date is applied, it must be truthful, accurate, and compliant with FSIS standards. To meet these requirements, the calendar date must state both the month and day (plus the year for frozen or shelf-stable items) and feature an explanatory phrase right next to it, such as "Best if Used By".

Food Safety vs. Food Quality

The most critical distinction to understand is that product dates are indicators of quality, not safety.

Manufacturers calculate quality dates by evaluating factors such as storage temperatures during distribution, packaging type (like modified atmosphere packaging for fresh beef), and product ingredients (like preservatives in sausage). While a perishable item's quality, texture, or flavor may decline after the printed date passes, the food should still be safe to eat as long as it has been handled and stored properly. Consumers should rely on their senses to inspect food for signs of spoilage rather than automatically discarding it based on the calendar date.

Common Date-Labeling Phrases Explained

Because there are no universally standardized descriptions for open dating in the United States, you will see a variety of phrases on grocery packaging:

"Best if Used By/Before": Highlights when the product will have the best flavor or quality. It is not a purchase date or a safety warning.

"Sell-By": Tells the retailer how long to keep the item on display for inventory control. It is not a safety date.