"Sell By" and "Best By" Dates: What They Really Mean

First on the agenda is to report on how our eMeals planning is going. I mentioned last week what our grocery bill came out that week. It was a little higher than I would've liked, but we also got some items from this week's list. This week our groceries came out to $39 (plus $4 for a bad-day Ben and Jerry's remediation). Bringing our average total to about $60 per week. Not bad! I'd say those eMeals are working. :)


Now onto today's topic: "Sell By" and "Best By" Dates

Expiration dates are a huge key for those who need to get the most out of their money. If we don't pay attention to when food goes bad, we could end up wasting money, and wasting money goes against everything this blog stands for. But "Sell By" and "Best By" dates aren't expiration dates...are they?

"Best By" dates are merely for the the grocery stores to keep rotating their stock (and to help them know what items sell and at what rate). They are also the suggestions of manufactures stating the item will have their guaranteed flavor up until  that specified date. Eating items after their "Best Buy" date usually isn't dangerous  and sometimes you won't even notice a taste difference.

"Sell By" dates, however, that are found on dairy and meat products are good for guidance when discerning how long an item will be good for. The item will be good PAST the sell by date, but for how long depends on which item.

My favorite resource on this topic is a website called Still Tasty. On this site you can search just about any food item cooked/uncooked. It will then supply you with optimum storage conditions (will it freeze well? will it survive humidity?) as well as estimates for how long an item will last based on where you store it (pantry, fridge, freezer). It even mentions the temperatures it assumes your freezer and fridge are set to in order to provide proper estimates. Not only is it detailed and user friendly, Still Tasty states the sources it uses to bring you these estimates (many of which are government certified sources).

Along with the website they have an iPhone app, for $2, that will even alert you when your food is going bad based on when you bought it. For now, my husband and I have it fairly under control with our meal plans, so I didn't buy it but I could see how it would be very useful if you don't have each food item assigned to a meal (though I recommend that you do).

Either way, if you're ever unsure about an item in your pantry/fridge/freezer, or if you're looking to properly store items...Still Tasty is the best and most reliable resource I know.