The consequences of "Sell by" food labeling
It's estimated that 3 million tons of food are thrown out annually which stems from confusion over "sell by" dates on food packaging. According to ReFED, a nonprofit organization combating food waste, food sitting in landfills "produces annual greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 30% of U.S. passenger vehicle transportation."
To help stem this, California's governor has signed a bill that will replace "sell by" labels with newly established uniform terms instead.
For years, consumers have mistaken "sell by" labels as indicators of foods' freshness and safety when, in fact, they are to let grocers know when to rotate stock.
With the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and save an estimated 473 billion dollars annually, this bill holds a lot of promise.
Learn about the new labeling guidelines and more in this article from Real Simple:
https://apple.news/ABxTx21XnTzqoXrN05ArATg
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Serenity Township
Thanks for posting this informative article. I do wonder though what “rotating the food means?”
Slipstream
I notice the food rotation when I shop. The oldest food is up front and newly stocked items are in the back. I was buying bread the other day, and the loaves with dates closest to the current date were on top of the bread stack, those with later dates were on the bottom.
Evangel
I quit shopping at the local Vons because after bringing food home, I often found the "sell by" date was long past due. They weren't throwing stuff out, they were selling it figuring people wouldn't care--or notice such details as I would.