Dates on Foods

Dates on food packaging are often used by consumers to determine if food should be eaten or not. 

Actually, there is no requirement to put sell-by or use-by dates on foods (except baby formula). Those dates are provided for convenience to allow the stores and companies to know when the food will start to lose eating quality. It helps them know when to take foods off the shelves of stores.

These dates are NOT indicators of food safety.

Best by/ Best if used by dates: Tell when a product will be best flavor or quality. These are not a purchase-by date.

Sell by dates: Tell the store how long to display the food.

Use by dates: Last date to use the food while at peak quality. These requirements are different for baby formula.

Freeze by dates: Last date to freeze food to maintain the best quality. 

  

Clean and Safe during COVID-19

Some folks are very worried about taking trips to the grocery store. 

Please know that the USDA does not know of any cases of  COVID-19 being spread through food or food packaging, but the virus may be found on lots of surfaces. So, some extra precautions after you visit the grocery store may help keep your family safe.

WASH YOUR HANDS - Washing your hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and warm water is one of the best ways to keep yourself safe from all germs you may encounter. Its especially smart to wash up when you get home every day, before you cook, after you handle raw meat, and before you eat.

Disinfect your phone. Your phone goes everywhere you do. Some experts suggest leaving your phone in the car when you go in public places, but that's hard. Its smart to disinfect your phone at least once a day.

Wipe off some groceries. When you get home, you may choose to wipe off boxes, cans, bags, and unopened, vacuum-packed meats like hotdogs or deli meats. Germs may be transferred from person to person on lots of different surfaces, so this step can help keep the virus out of your home.

Do wipe off fresh meat packages. Soap or disinfectants like bleach or ammonia may be transferred through the packaging and contaminate the meat. You don't want to consume those.

Do not wash your meat. Washing fresh meat in the sink can splash germs all over your kitchen. 

Do not worry about bacteria and viruses on fresh meat. When you cook meat to a safe temperature, any bacteria or viruses will be killed.