There’s probably more nuance to it in reality. Sometimes yogurt goes bad before the expiration date, which would be on the lower end of the probable expiration

There’s probably more nuance to it in reality. Sometimes yogurt goes bad before the expiration date, which would be on the lower end of the probable expiration duration bell curve. So given the myriad of different factors*, where along the bell curve do you decide to put the cut off? The longer the duration, the more people will eventually ingest expired food and risk illness, but also less food is wasted. From a purely economic perspective, it might come down to the cost of food waste vs hospitalizations and lost productivity. From a user experience perspective, I’d rather only eat food before it’s expired and throw away some good food rather than throw away less food while occasionally eating unsafe food. It’s a trade off, really, and probably not some massive conspiracy, although I wouldn’t be surprised if the agencies responsible had been “overly cautious” with the expiration dates. Perhaps to increase profits or promote higher than necessary food production to increase our food security. * - There’s lots of factors that would change that date. For example, is the yogurt stored at the front or back of a refrigerator? It’s usually colder in the back so it might last longer there. How long did it take to get it home or to stock it? Where in the industrial chiller at the supermarket did it sit? Closer to the aisle where it’s warmer? Was the cold chain** disturbed in general? What’s the specific fat content of that style/brand/cow? There’s really a lot at play here. ** - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_chain https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_chain*