Expiration Dates Are Old News

Expiration Dates are kind of similar to the hair (or lack of hair) on a man's head.  It may give you some small clue about how old he is, but will tell you nothing about his quality or anything else.  Similarly, expiration dates can often give you clues about the age of an item of food, but they won't actually tell you anything about the quality or whether the item is still safe to eat.

In short, expiration dates are a joke.  Food obviously lasts SO much longer than the dates indicate.

There are two main reasons for expiration dates.  First: government bureaucracy.  The government likes to regulate everything we do (for our own good of course ;) ).  Second: corporate convenience. Having dates on products allows a company to keep track of and rotate stock more safely and efficiently.  For more on the why of expiration dates, look here.

Did you notice how neither of those two reasons had anything to do with the actual quality of the food?  So if the expiration dates don't actually inform us on when our food is no longer good tasting or safe to eat, what does?

I'm glad you asked...

Some foods, like most dairy products, have a relatively short shelf life, so even if you don't feel obligated to eat that container of yogurt by the date on the lid, it is helpful to have a date on the package to give you some clue about how long to expect it to last before it goes bad.

But an awful lot of shelf-stable foods (pretty much anything that comes in a can or a box that you don't keep in your refrigerator) can last a LOT longer than that date stamp implies.  Here are some examples from my own pantry:

Once I found a screaming deal on peanut butter at my local scratch & dent store: 99 cents per jar, because it had expired the month before.  I think I bought 300 jars, and we used them for a few years.  It turns out that peanut butter lasts about four years after the expiration date before it even starts tasting a little old.  Luckily, we only had three jars left at that point.

Granola bars are just perfect for two years after the date.  Still crunchy, or soft and chewy, depending on how they started out.  And when we moved two years ago, way back in the corner I found one lonely box of chewy-style bars that had expired eight years before.  Most people would toss that out without a second thought, but I was curious as to how it had fared.  They were rock hard.  Little granite bars.  So apparently, sometime between two and eight years after the date is the point of no-return for granola bars.

I like to make sure we use cold cereal within one year of the date on the box - it's still perfectly safe, and nutritious after that, but sometimes it tastes stale.  And it seems kind of mean to make my kids eat stale cereal.  If you're worried about safety, it can last a long, long time.  But if you you're going for taste, try to keep it under two years and let your let your taste buds be your guide.

The climate you live in can really make a difference, too.  In Utah, where the air is crackling dry and I kept my food in the basement, I could keep a box of noodles for 10 years and it would be fine.  Here in Boston, the air is wet like a sauna, and we don't have a basement.  I have noticed a definite, and rapid, decline in the quality of my boxed foods.  Cans and jars are unaffected, of course.

Bottom line, don't always trust the date.  And don't throw out food based on an arbitrary number stamped on a can.  Use your own common sense, do a little research, and make your own informed choices.



Kate




*Note: These examples are my own, and they're based on my own experience and comfort level.  If you don't feel comfortable eating something past the expiration date, don't do it!
Also: if your food shows obvious signs of having gone bad (smells weird, looks strange), don't be foolish.  Toss it!