Ignore "Use By" Dates?

by Nicki Gostin, Posted Feb 19th 2010 @ 1:30PM

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We've all been there: You open the fridge, reach for the milk, and notice the date on the carton says it expired yesterday. You gingerly sniff the carton, fully expecting to be overwhelmed by noxious fumes but instead all you can smell is . . . milk.

According to University of Minnesota food scientist Ted Labuza (who spoke to Slate), perishables like milk and meat have a three- to seven-day grace period after the expiration date, assuming you are a normal person and store said perishables in the fridge and not, say, the sauna. The fact is, the "sell by" date that appears on that questionable gallon of milk serves as a guideline for stores on when they should pull products from their shelves -- not when you should indulge in a last sip. Rather than being an indicator of the product's safety span, the date implies when a food's quality -- its taste, aroma and appearance -- would be at peak conditions.

What's even more confusing is the lack of consistency in "open dating" descriptors and regulations on labeling. In addition to "sell by," certain products contain "best if used by (or before)," to indicate peak quality, "use by," to establish a finite don't-ingest-after-this-date or simply the jumble of numbers that is a "closed date," for those long-living shelved goods.

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration requires that an expiration date appear on only infant formula, which must contain the quantity of nutrients described on its label. Milk -- so widely known for its spoiling -- is not uniformly regulated, but is handled on a state by state basis. Manufacturers perform stress tests on milk to determine an expiration date, ranging from 15 to 21 days post-pasteurization. Only certain states, indicated in the chart below, mandate a specific "sell by" date, with a handful falling short of that 15-day manufacturer-determined minimum.

New York City is notoriously the only city which contains its own regulation on milk dating; there are no requirements for the state at large. The debate rages as to whether this separate date is due to longer unloading times during delivery or improper store storage temperatures. But if you've ever tried to move into an apartment building in Manhattan at 4:30pm on a weekday like one of our Slashfood writers, you'd probably guess it's the former.

With all this talk about milk, you're probably wondering how to factor in expiration dates on all those other perishable foods you buy? Pay close attention to meat, which should be cooked or frozen within two days of purchase. If you freeze that ground beef or rack of lamb, be sure to cook them within 3 months or 12 months, respectively. Cold cuts, which can contain an organism called listeria, should be consumed by their use by dates.

Other foods offer some more wiggle room, though. You'll get a few weeks out of hard cheeses -- which is good to know, considering how stinky they can be outright. Interestingly, the United States Department of Agriculture found that eggs refrigerated at an optimal 27 degrees are safe for up to four to five weeks past their expiration. As you'd expect, you'll have the most leeway with dry goods. Pasta and rice is fine for a year. Unopened packages of cookies are good for a few months (though we wonder who has packets of cookies that sit around unopened for months?) and canned goods are safe for at least five years: perfect if there's a major catastrophe that keeps you housebound for . . . years. But beware of cans that are dented or rusted, as rust signifies tiny pin holes that can provide an entrance point for bacteria.

In the end, the best "use by" detector is planted firmly in the middle of your face. If it smells suspicious, it's best to chuck it; if it smells okay then it's usually fine.

Provided by the International Dairy Foods Association, Code Date Requirements by State for Fluid Milk:

State	Regulation regarding code date
CA	Processor determines a sell date.
CT	Must be pulled 12 days past pasteurization. The term "sell by" is strongly encouraged.
FL	Shelf life cannot exceed 10 days from the date it was packaged, unless the processor meets additional requirements that extend the allowance to 12.
GA	Processor provided test data that determines a mandatory Sell By Date for retail establishments.
HI	Processor determines a code date, which is evaluated by a director.
MD	Shelf life cannot exceed 7 days from the date it was packaged, unless the processor meets additional requirements that extend the allowance to 12.
MI	A testing program conducted by the processor and the state of MI determines the pull date.
MT	Must be pulled 12 days past pasteurization. Exemptions include grade A raw milk, if sold directly to the consumer, and ultra-pasteurized products.
NC	Processors select an expiration date, after which the product will not be sold.
NH	A code date is used to identify when the product was manufactured.
NJ	Shelf-life expiration date is set by the processor based on bacteriologic and organoleptic evaluation, which is reviewed by the State Department.
NM	Products must be pulled 15 days past pasteurization.
NV	A required code date indicates last date of sale of the product.
NY	New York City requires that products be pulled after 9 days. Ultra-pasteurized products can be sold for up to 50 days.
PA	Products must be pulled 14 days past pasteurization.
VA	Processor establishes a pull date that is certified by a regulatory authority, after which the milk would continue to meet regulatory conditions for a minimum of 96 hours after sale
WA	Products feature a pull date that allows the consumer time for normal home consumption or use.

Filed Under: Health & Medical
Tags: expiration dates, food expiration dates, food labels

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Reader comments (Page 5 of 7)

3-01-2010 @12:07PM ann k said... actually after childdhood, ie:growth, milk leaches calicum from your bones thus osteoporosis
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3-01-2010 @12:08PM cozycall said... I have kept food for weeks even months, after the expiration dates, by simply using experience and common sense, and completely disregarding the "use by " dates. Afterall it was not that long ago when there were no dates on any consumer items. I have never had any health problems or regrets accept when I ate improperly prepared food at restaurants. Safe food storage and preparation was once taught in public school, but not any more, people now would rather the government make the choice for them in various ways. Rather than trust in their own ability to know whats safe for them.

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3-01-2010 @12:16PM Quent said... If you refrigerate eggs at an "optimal" 27 degrees, they'd be frozen. Watery things start to freeze at 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
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3-01-2010 @1:18PM Zephyr said... Maybe the temperature to store eggs is 27 degrees Celsius.

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3-01-2010 @12:37PM Jack said... Common sense is what is needed. A lot of the date are not required by any goverment agency but place there by the producer to make sure the stores rotate the stock and to help sell the product. A lot of it is manyless. I buy meat, beef that is past the date, and will be brown color. It is not bad just looks bad. A lot of store pull these meat, repackage it with a new day. Meat does not have to look red to be good.
As far as eggs are concerned, I worked for a while at a egg wholesaler . The eggs came in from the farmer and went in to cold storage. The took out and sold as fresh eggs some that had been in there months. The eggs were removed to go to the stores with the oldest one out first, but only at big times for egg sales were eggs that came fresh from the farm the ones going to the stores. Of course now egg are produced at egg factories, where they contol the production of eggs so that there are not a lot sitting around. But eggs will not spoil as long as refigerated, they will loose taste the yokes will loose color, but like so many thing we are all hung up on getting fresh stuff. You would be surprise as how long some things sit in the food chain from the farm to your store.
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3-01-2010 @12:35PM Derek said... The biggest problem I find with dairy (as someone stated with Wal-Mart) at most stores is the effect of cost-cutting initiatives to save power. The "coolers" that hold the milk/eggs/cheese are often lukewarm, the milk jug isn't even holding a chill when I pick it out of the "cooler" - food is stored at unsafe temps all across the US by companies trying to save a few pennies on the power bill.
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5-04-2010 @2:04PM DIANA COHEN said... I ENJOYED THE ARTICIAL, I LIKE THE PART ABOUT YOUR NOSE BEING THE BEST USE BY DATE DETECTOR. THE OLD SAYING GOES "WHEN IN DOUGHT, THROW IT OUT."
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3-01-2010 @12:43PM jerry said... who cares
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3-01-2010 @12:44PM Veronica said... First time on your website.....BUT thought your pixs of pancakes leaves a lot to be desired - rather - completely unappetizing .....looks more like some sort of alien.... I know a great cinematographer/photographer if you want his name....email me!
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3-01-2010 @12:54PM Digi said... When I was growing up we had a rule. We ate the older stuff first. If milk was about to, or on exp date, we made a point to finish it that day or soon. We didnt consider that the day it went bad, but we knew because of it, it could be any day after. We used what we call HUMAN SENSES to determine if it had gone bad. Milk, Cheese, (pretty much anything dairy) are the easiest. They have dead give aways in smell and sight. I have to say not once have we gotten food poisoning, or drank sour milk (which YOU can live through BTW its the same as eating cottage cheese, sure its not good to some but it isnt gona kill ya, the idea of the act is gona hurt you more than the actual act.).

SO yeah I say teh dates are more an est, sicne most things cant last forever. However canned food is soo much and harder to judge until opening. Dinty Moore likes to be modest to their exp dates but seems to last forever...as does spam.
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3-01-2010 @1:02PM c. said... E.Z.SELL A SCAM PEOPLE.
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3-01-2010 @1:01PM Marty said... Actually little in that article is true. No one gets ill from ingesting soured milk (in fact soured milk is great for baking), but pathogens like salmonella, botcholism, listeria, etc. do not necessarily smell bad... sniffing food is meaningless nonsense, most spoilage can more easily be detected visually, most folks can open a package and see slimey hot dogs but they will still smell very appetizing. And no dates on perishables mean anything when delivery throughout its route to point of sale is compromised... what good is a date on a canned ham when somewhere along its route it was unrefrigerated? Shoppers don't handle food properly either, how many leave perishables in their car on a hot day while they run other errands... how many times do shoppers change their mind and leave meat with the canned beans (could very well be a chicken), then hours later some stock clerk simply puts it back into the meat case. I've always maintained that all perishables should be packaged with a tamperproof chemical thermometer that would glow conspicuously when exposed to an elevated temperature for so many minutes (would add a penny or two to cost and we have the technology). The food industry has no intentions of perpetrating food safety, only their profits. Articles like the present one are just silly, actually hillarious... what good are state by state best-by dates on a tuna salad sandwich. LOL-LOL

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3-01-2010 @2:24PM jb said... excuse me but when you bake there is a chemical change and teh heat kills bacteria...

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3-01-2010 @1:03PM jennifer said... Most food-borne illnesses have been traced back to the nasty people that handle food from picking and processing to packing and serving it. Mexicans have terrible personal hygiene and are the main cause of e-coli and salmonella outbreaks.
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3-01-2010 @2:31PM Catscratch said... " But if you've ever tried to move into an apartment building in Manhattan at 4:30pm on a weekday like one of our Slashfood writers, you'd probably guess it's the former."

And we care about provincial New Yorkers why?

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3-01-2010 @2:25PM c said... E.Z.SELL GOLD.COM A SCAM PEOPLE .THEY WILL RIPP YOU OFF.
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3-01-2010 @1:08PM Johnny said... The best prices are on expiered food, I love it = we can eat foreverrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
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3-01-2010 @1:11PM Zephyr said... I want to say something about the expiration dates in yoghurts. If consumed weeks before, it probably will taste nothing. In fact, it is generally advised to wait until one week before the expiration date. The industrial production of yoghurt is rather mean in the amount of bacterial culture used and the time allowed for fermentation. The result is a dairy product without no sour and with almost no flavor. My personal experience with natural skimmed yoghurts is that they taste even better and more sour several weeks after the expiration date.
In contrast, if the container is broken or pierced, it will spoil rather quickly even weeks before the expiration date, usually by a colorful fungal contamination. In some cases can become spoilt before expiration date with no apparent dammage of the container and no fungal growth. It would taste rather like overheated milk and curiously enough, they won't be sour! This latter may explain what did happen. Either a failure in the growth of the Lactobacillus strain during the fermentation process or a rather less unlikely posterior growth of some kind of anaerobial microorganism capable to survive in an acidic environment and break down the lactic acid generated during the fermentation. In any case I think that a stronger fermentation process would prevent such kind of spoilage.
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