8 ms·

Wow, it's legal to sell expired food in the US?

AnIdiotOnTheNet 4y ago
Most food items have "sell by" dates that has very little to do with expiration. In fact a lot of food doesn't really expire at all if properly stored.
- dylan604 4y ago
  >In fact a lot of food doesn't really expire at all if properly stored. I would have to argue with the use of the word food here. We have been convinced items available in grocery stores is food, when it is really highly processed ingredients with loads of preservatives presented as food. I consider food the items sold along the exterior walls of the stores (at least in typical US store layouts).
briHass 4y ago
It depends on the state and how the date is worded. You may have noticed some products list a 'best by' date, which really isn't the same as 'this will have gone bad by this date'. I think 'use by' is the magical phrase which implies something has expired. There's one of those stores near me, and as far as I've seen, they typically sell stuff near the expired date, not past it. Most consumers are turned off by buying truly expired foods.
DavidPeiffer 4y ago
Note the parent said "expired". We don't have the best labeling standards. Rather than saying "Expires 3/25/2023", food could say any of: * "Consume or freeze by 3/25/2023" * "Do not use after 3/25/2023" * "Packed on 3/25/2023" * "Best by 3/25/2023" * "Sell by 3/25/2023" * "Use by 3/25/2023" My understanding is anything consumed inside a restaurant or factory preparing food must use food that is not expired, and that's something inspectors check for. PDF with more detail on Page 3: https://foodbankiowa.org/app/uploads/2022/03/Shelf-Life-of-Food-Bank-Products-2.pdf https://foodbankiowa.org/app/uploads/2022/03/Shelf-Life-of-F...
ProllyInfamous 4y ago
It's not technically `expired`, it's `best before date`. Yes, absolutely legal. For example, you can get an MSRP $1.89 can of Progresso Chicken Noodle at a store in Chattanooga Called "Discovery Outlet" for $0.25.
- gumby 4y ago
  And it’s perfectly fine to eat well after that date. It’s in the interest of the manufacturer to keep that “expiration” date as short as possible. Unlike with medication, there is no actual rule for when food expires.
  - cogman10 4y ago
    It depends a lot on the food. Typically, canned food is practically immortal. If there's no bulge, it's good and modern canning has done a lot to avoid the bulge. Dried foods are somewhat similar, though they go rancid more readily. If you are in a super dry climate they last longer. Foods that need refrigeration, in my experience, tend to be super close to the use by/best by dates when it comes to going bad. Exceptions are things with a lot of vinegar in them (ketchup or pickles for example). Milk, though, seems to curdle right on the the date.
    - gumby 4y ago
      An example of an exception to your last point is eggs. In the US* the eggs could have been in a refrigerator for a week or up to a year before being sent to the supermarket. * I don’t know if this is still the case with the current 2023 high price of eggs. There has been a lot of monopoly/consolidation in eggs and it’s unclear what’s really going on.
    - drdec 4y ago
      FYI, ketchup does not require refrigeration. (How do you think restaurants keep bottles of ketchup on the tables all day otherwise?)
      - 4y ago

Most food items have "sell by" dates that has very little to do with expiration. In fact a lot of food doesn't really expire at all if properly stored.

dylan604 4y ago
>In fact a lot of food doesn't really expire at all if properly stored. I would have to argue with the use of the word food here. We have been convinced items available in grocery stores is food, when it is really highly processed ingredients with loads of preservatives presented as food. I consider food the items sold along the exterior walls of the stores (at least in typical US store layouts).

briHass 4y ago

It depends on the state and how the date is worded. You may have noticed some products list a 'best by' date, which really isn't the same as 'this will have gone bad by this date'. I think 'use by' is the magical phrase which implies something has expired. There's one of those stores near me, and as far as I've seen, they typically sell stuff near the expired date, not past it. Most consumers are turned off by buying truly expired foods.

DavidPeiffer 4y ago

Note the parent said "expired". We don't have the best labeling standards. Rather than saying "Expires 3/25/2023", food could say any of: * "Consume or freeze by 3/25/2023" * "Do not use after 3/25/2023" * "Packed on 3/25/2023" * "Best by 3/25/2023" * "Sell by 3/25/2023" * "Use by 3/25/2023" My understanding is anything consumed inside a restaurant or factory preparing food must use food that is not expired, and that's something inspectors check for. PDF with more detail on Page 3: https://foodbankiowa.org/app/uploads/2022/03/Shelf-Life-of-Food-Bank-Products-2.pdf https://foodbankiowa.org/app/uploads/2022/03/Shelf-Life-of-F...

ProllyInfamous 4y ago

It's not technically `expired`, it's `best before date`. Yes, absolutely legal. For example, you can get an MSRP $1.89 can of Progresso Chicken Noodle at a store in Chattanooga Called "Discovery Outlet" for $0.25.

gumby 4y ago
And it’s perfectly fine to eat well after that date. It’s in the interest of the manufacturer to keep that “expiration” date as short as possible. Unlike with medication, there is no actual rule for when food expires.
- cogman10 4y ago
  It depends a lot on the food. Typically, canned food is practically immortal. If there's no bulge, it's good and modern canning has done a lot to avoid the bulge. Dried foods are somewhat similar, though they go rancid more readily. If you are in a super dry climate they last longer. Foods that need refrigeration, in my experience, tend to be super close to the use by/best by dates when it comes to going bad. Exceptions are things with a lot of vinegar in them (ketchup or pickles for example). Milk, though, seems to curdle right on the the date.
  - gumby 4y ago
    An example of an exception to your last point is eggs. In the US* the eggs could have been in a refrigerator for a week or up to a year before being sent to the supermarket. * I don’t know if this is still the case with the current 2023 high price of eggs. There has been a lot of monopoly/consolidation in eggs and it’s unclear what’s really going on.
  - drdec 4y ago
    FYI, ketchup does not require refrigeration. (How do you think restaurants keep bottles of ketchup on the tables all day otherwise?)
    - 4y ago