California's new AB 660 law bans confusing Sell By labels and standardizes food dates, a change that could keep billions of edible meals out of the trash.
I already dont waste. If the food is bad, I throw it away. If its not, I dont..... no matter the date. If you want to find real waste, look no further than dumpsters at grocery stores. They throw away perfectly fine foods in insane quantities. And they spray paint all over them, so the homeless or dumpster divers cant use any of it.
In Russia, store employees throw products into dumpsters—items whose expiration dates passed just yesterday. Meanwhile, Russian pensioners go hungry because their pensions are meager, as Putin pours all the country's funds into the war against Ukraine.
I've never really paid attention to those dates, but know others who did. I remember working in a law office where the Admin would periodically go through the freezer and throw away "expired" coffee - insane!
Frankly, most "food" products don't need an expiration date, as they have more toxins, chemicals, etc. to keep it shelf stable for decades. Only fresh foods/meats should require an expiration date. (Pure) Honey, the only food that will never spoil doesn't need an expiration date. It's easy to find honey that has been tampered with- it has an expiration date...
I've eaten beans that were a year beyond the expiration date. If milk doesn't smell bad I'm not throwing it away because of a date. Some people have zero common sense
I grew up on a farm in Canada back in the 60-70’s and there was no such thing as a “best before date” on anything, anywhere! I never in my life heard of anyone that died!! - unless you’re “zoned out” on some “joy”substance, and even then, it’s not difficult knowing if food is good or rotten!! Just another politically motivated money-grab instituted by politicians that should all be locked up or sent out looking for a real job!!
It's funny… the timing of this substack. A couple days ago my adult son and I cooked together - we made burgers. Pulled out condiments...My yellow mustard had an expiration date of January 2026. He refused to use it and apologized for being like his sister - who is adamant about not eating food past its best by/use by date. I used it on my burger and of course was fine. My daughter has been dogmatic about not eating food past its date since she was 10 years old. It drives me bananas. It's an OCD issue. It is truly shameful how much food is thrown out unnecessarily. Standardizing this system nationwide would be a huge help.
When I first started working on food waste research, I was shocked to learn about the variety of date labels. I had always assumed the date= expiration date. Hopefully more states pass legislation like California’s. Good for consumers, good for the environment, it’s a win-win.
It should not be a replacement it should be both. Already we are faced with the issue of stores that just overwrite the date with a new label, for meat anyway which is often labeled by the store. Yes it's true, although if a person doesn't live in one of the scammy states, one might not have seen it. Two dates on the packaging would solve this, and the fact of two dates on items all throughout the grocery store would serve as a standard so that deviation on store controlled labels would stand out.
Examples could be:
A store sometimes sells meats that have a 2 day spread between sell by and use by, but other stores always only ever show a week spread: something is off with Store 1, and shoppers and regulators can easily see it.
If stores are required to log the dates when they put the packages out, and barcode them, then packages that receive multiple labels with new dates slapped over the old could become a lot harder to accomplish. Fixing price errors would have its own code to key in at point of printing, so that doesn't pose a problem.
I think an easy way would to be to put the sell by date in a code that the grocery workers know how decipher, or a QR code that they can easily scan when doing their stock rotations. That way, consumers don’t get confused.
Best maha-report piece in weeks, spoiled by inserting Pfiffany's desperate struggle for relevance.
I already dont waste. If the food is bad, I throw it away. If its not, I dont..... no matter the date. If you want to find real waste, look no further than dumpsters at grocery stores. They throw away perfectly fine foods in insane quantities. And they spray paint all over them, so the homeless or dumpster divers cant use any of it.
Agreed. It's not responsible behavior. It more super Judgemental punishment, of the poor.
In Russia, store employees throw products into dumpsters—items whose expiration dates passed just yesterday. Meanwhile, Russian pensioners go hungry because their pensions are meager, as Putin pours all the country's funds into the war against Ukraine.
I've never really paid attention to those dates, but know others who did. I remember working in a law office where the Admin would periodically go through the freezer and throw away "expired" coffee - insane!
Those dates are basically on food to increase sales. Never paid any attention to them.
Will wonders never cease. A bill coming out of California that is both beneficial and well thought out.
Frankly, most "food" products don't need an expiration date, as they have more toxins, chemicals, etc. to keep it shelf stable for decades. Only fresh foods/meats should require an expiration date. (Pure) Honey, the only food that will never spoil doesn't need an expiration date. It's easy to find honey that has been tampered with- it has an expiration date...
I've eaten beans that were a year beyond the expiration date. If milk doesn't smell bad I'm not throwing it away because of a date. Some people have zero common sense
I grew up on a farm in Canada back in the 60-70’s and there was no such thing as a “best before date” on anything, anywhere! I never in my life heard of anyone that died!! - unless you’re “zoned out” on some “joy”substance, and even then, it’s not difficult knowing if food is good or rotten!! Just another politically motivated money-grab instituted by politicians that should all be locked up or sent out looking for a real job!!
It's funny… the timing of this substack. A couple days ago my adult son and I cooked together - we made burgers. Pulled out condiments...My yellow mustard had an expiration date of January 2026. He refused to use it and apologized for being like his sister - who is adamant about not eating food past its best by/use by date. I used it on my burger and of course was fine. My daughter has been dogmatic about not eating food past its date since she was 10 years old. It drives me bananas. It's an OCD issue. It is truly shameful how much food is thrown out unnecessarily. Standardizing this system nationwide would be a huge help.
I have Caesar salad dressing that expired over a year ago. it's still good
When I first started working on food waste research, I was shocked to learn about the variety of date labels. I had always assumed the date= expiration date. Hopefully more states pass legislation like California’s. Good for consumers, good for the environment, it’s a win-win.
It should not be a replacement it should be both. Already we are faced with the issue of stores that just overwrite the date with a new label, for meat anyway which is often labeled by the store. Yes it's true, although if a person doesn't live in one of the scammy states, one might not have seen it. Two dates on the packaging would solve this, and the fact of two dates on items all throughout the grocery store would serve as a standard so that deviation on store controlled labels would stand out.
Examples could be:
A store sometimes sells meats that have a 2 day spread between sell by and use by, but other stores always only ever show a week spread: something is off with Store 1, and shoppers and regulators can easily see it.
If stores are required to log the dates when they put the packages out, and barcode them, then packages that receive multiple labels with new dates slapped over the old could become a lot harder to accomplish. Fixing price errors would have its own code to key in at point of printing, so that doesn't pose a problem.
I think an easy way would to be to put the sell by date in a code that the grocery workers know how decipher, or a QR code that they can easily scan when doing their stock rotations. That way, consumers don’t get confused.
Well, what I am saying is that there are untrustworthy stores, and that is why shopper legibility is necessary.
Nope