Expiration dates on foods

Toomuchstuff

Toomuchstuff

Member
Location
Wisconsin
I read this article and couldn't believe it . A family in Colorado bought a box of cereal from Walmart that expired 21 years ago !

Here's the story .... https://www.tmj4.com/news/national/...es-old-cereal-bought-from-walmart-in-colorado

Well , getting back to expiration dates, do you watch the "use by" dates on food ? I'll let canned or packaged food slide a few months
past the date . Fresh food - if it passes the sniff test , it's okay. I found a couple boxes of mac and cheese in the cabinet last week . I didn't check the date before I made it . I took one bite and spit it out . It tasted like cardboard ! I checked the use by date and it was 2 years old ! YUCK ! I have fish in the freezer that's a year old . I don't know if that'll be okay. We'll soon see !

I also read that medicine,if stored correctly ,is good for years and years after the expiration date. Do you think so ?
 

If it smells ok and the lids don't bulge or the can isn't dented I use it. I don't care what the expiration date says. My freezer is set at 0 degrees and I keep all my things double wrapped. I never depend on the store wrapping to keep items fresh. Some frozen foods last longer than others as far a flavor. You aren't suppose to freeze ham but I've done it for years although I noticed ham and bacon develop an off taste in a shorter period of time than beef. As far as medicine. My doctor son in law said some meds will last longer then the expiration date but you don't know which ones so it is better to discard out dated drugs.
 
I only pay attention to expiration dates on milk, bread, and meat, and only when I buy them. After that I never look at the date again. I had some canned corn last month with an exp. date of 2009. It was just fine.
 

I'e been trying to use up things in my pantry lately. Just today I cooked a package of banana nut muffins that said expired in 2017. I bought them for my grand daughter, who loved them. She moved out a year ago. I added some raisins and they were just fine. Meat on the other hand I pay attention to.
 
I rotate my dates in the pantry when I buy food, but other than trying to use my older ones first, I don't worry too much about expiration dates. I've used canned and packaged food way beyond their dates, depending what it is, I just use my judgement. I've thrown out old dairy. eggs and breads when I think it's needed.
 
I try to remember to check the expiration dates and do most of the time. Once I bought a can of ravioli and discovered it was 2 years old. I threw it out. I also check the exp. dates on dog food and treats.
 
Learned my lesson about checking expiration dates at the supermarket. On Saturday, the 3rd, I bought two 4-packs of yogurt. I didn't look at it again until Monday the 5th and checked the expiration date after reading this thread. There was no label about "use by date", or "sell by date" or "best by date". No, just a date stamped Mar 7, 2018, which means I needed to eat eight cartons of yogurt in two days. Well, I'm not doing that and I'm just going to have to chance it. :p
 
According to what I've read, the "sell by" date still allows quite a bit of time to "use by," even with the perishable items.

A doctor friend once told me that the expiration dates on medications can largely be ignored, unless you keep the stuff for years and years. Usually the worst that can happen is that it loses its effectiveness.
 
My pharmacist daughter said most meds can last a year after the expiration date on the bottle. However any older than that she said to check with your pharmacist!
 
Toomuchstuff said:
I have fish in the freezer that's a year old . I don't know if that'll be okay. We'll soon see !
Click to expand...

Anything that is frozen and kept frozen is good
forever, they tell you 6 Months for this, 1 year
for that and 1 month for another, but that is just
for the taste, it doesn't lose its value as good food,
but the taste might change.

I always think that tinned food is OK past the date,
also dried food like pasta, flour sugar etc.

Mike.
 

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