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I can't understand why you even are wondering about it. Seems pretty easy to grasp. If it's
best by a certain date, then it's NOT best after that date, most likely.Lots of people simply don't want to chance a poorer flavor, or quality....snip
Again, except for the case of infant formula, this is not a safety date nor a mandatory label.
I think she is not so much referring to people who are concerned about quality so much as people who really do think products are unsafe after the date. The daughter I mentioned, she's one of them. In spite of being a pretty intelligent woman somehow she bought into that idea without ever really taking the time to examine it. I think she's far from being alone in that acceptance. I mean at one point I seriously sat down with her and had a conversation about how it's mostly about quality and not about food that's going to make you deathly sick if you eat it. She's still iffy about those dates and acts like 48 hours later, poof, canned food goes from being good to being bad. I do think I finally convinced her to accept the sniff test for milk though.
I don't think I've bought a single can of food that was so expensive that I would risk eating something past its prime just to save a few dollars. I've actually cut back on buying canned foods to "stock up" in general, so I only get what I'm planning to use within the next month or two.
The question is whether or not you are really risking anything.
Probably because for liability/CYA reasons, some stores/restaurants may have a policy of getting rid of anything that has passed the date, which makes people think that means it's bad?
Most charities will throw out anything past the printed date, whether it's "sell by" or "use by" or whatever.
Acidic Fruits, vegetables, and some beverages seem to take on a metallic flavor if allowed to sit on the shelves for too long. So I tend to use the freshness date as a guide in selecting the merchandise "most recently" placed in circulation.
I guess that I do this under the belief that by getting the newest product, I am buying more shelf life for my own storage purposes.
And this governs my shopping practices beyond canned goods. Cookies, dairy, produce, you name it. Why should I want to buy a bundle of celery that's been sitting out for a week, if I can instead buy one that's only been out for a day?
If it looks, smells, feels, or tastes even slightly different in any way shape or form, I would toss. And not lose any sleep over it, either.
Same here. At least then you are acting on actual information. I'm talking about those who would toss the can a month after the date without opening it and having any idea if it maintained all the original qualities or not.
The FDA requires an expiration date on all foods and drugs and disposable medical devices. About the only thing that really goes bad in a can are tomatoes. If a can is intact, has no rust, the top and bottom are not bloated out then the food inside the can should be good. If you open the can and it smells like you expect then I would assume it is good. If it is suppose to be cooked I would definitely cook it. But I would not just throw stuff out due to an arbitary date stamped on the can.
Last edited by VTsnowbird; 08-11-2022 at 06:19 PM..
Expiration dates appeared on things the very second that someone figured out they could make more money that way.
People believe it because marketing wants them to and work diligently towards that end. Some people haven't lived long enough to remember when canned food and other things did not have expiration dates and no one ever got sick because of it. Perfectly good food and other things are being thrown in the trash because they have been taught to believe it "expired" two hours ago.
Most charities will throw out anything past the printed date, whether it's "sell by" or "use by" or whatever.
Sure, and that's partly about CYA, and partly about perception-- no one wants to feel like they were given the "reject food" nobody else wants to eat just because they're poor.
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Seems pretty easy to grasp. If it's 
