> the myth of the "expiration date"

We (UK) have use by dates, and best before dates.

They mean exactly what they say.

i.e. Raw chicken will have a use by date, eat it beyond this and you risk getting the shits. On the other hand all fruit, veg, tins and most dairy simply have best before dates.... meaning use your eyes and nose to see if it is OK.

Foods' resilience vis-á-vis expiration dates varies. For example: yogurt seems unaffected even a week after "expiration". Manufacturers by law have to set a date, but it ain't a law for end-consumers.

There’s probably more nuance to it in reality. Sometimes yogurt goes bad before the expiration date, which would be on the lower end of the probable expiration duration bell curve.

So given the myriad of different factors*, where along the bell curve do you decide to put the cut off? The longer the duration, the more people will eventually ingest expired food and risk illness, but also less food is wasted.

From a purely economic perspective, it might come down to the cost of food waste vs hospitalizations and lost productivity.

From a user experience perspective, I’d rather only eat food before it’s expired and throw away some good food rather than throw away less food while occasionally eating unsafe food.

It’s a trade off, really, and probably not some massive conspiracy, although I wouldn’t be surprised if the agencies responsible had been “overly cautious” with the expiration dates. Perhaps to increase profits or promote higher than necessary food production to increase our food security.

* - There’s lots of factors that would change that date. For example, is the yogurt stored at the front or back of a refrigerator? It’s usually colder in the back so it might last longer there. How long did it take to get it home or to stock it? Where in the industrial chiller at the supermarket did it sit? Closer to the aisle where it’s warmer? Was the cold chain** disturbed in general? What’s the specific fat content of that style/brand/cow? There’s really a lot at play here.

** - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_chain*

This is a fight I am still waging with my girlfriend, who feels that an expiration date is law.

The nomenclature was severely fucked up. "Expiration" never should have been allowed.

If it had started as "Best by" then we'd have substantially less stigma around it.

I feel like I'm constantly at loggerheads with many of my friends too because of this. It's silly how so many of them unquestioningly obey expiration dates.

The silliest though are people who do so, but happily leave a pack of opened UHT milk in the fridge for months because it wouldn't expire for another year or so.