How to Be a Conscious Eater

50

SELL BY:

THE TRUTH BEHIND THE DATE

I

n terms of food safety or health risks, it’s generally fine to

eat foods past the “sell by,” “use by,” and “best if used by”

dates listed on packages. Almost always, these labels are

food manufacturers’ suggestions for peak freshness and taste,

not expiration dates. In other words, they’re about quality, not

safety. The labels can be confusing, though, because the defi-

nitions of the terms aren’t standardized, and labeling practices

tend to differ from one product to another and from one man-

ufacturer to another.

There’s usually quite a bit more time remaining on the clock

than the labels would have you believe. In general, most foods

can be eaten days, weeks, or even months past those printed

dates. Though over generations, many of us have lost the con-

fidence to trust our instincts on whether food is spoiled, we’re

actually wired with pretty sophisticated detectors. By that I

mean our five senses. You take a look at a food and see if it

has grown mold or appears slimy, for example, or you take a

whiff and notice an off smell. Mold is a serious spoilage issue

because it can produce toxins.

Foodborne illness usually happens not because of decay or

aging, a natural process, but when there’s contamination by

a pathogen on a farm or at a processing plant. Pay the most

attention to label dates for the same foods that are consid-

ered unsafe for pregnant women: deli meats, unpasteurized

dairy products, ready-to-eat refrigerated foods, and hot dogs

and sausages that aren’t fully cooked. The reason these are

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