My wife throws things out after the date has passed without checking to see
if the product is still good or not. But then again even after 22 years of
my cooking and not a single instance of poisoning, she maintains that a
date, stamped by an industry trying to get you to buy their wares quickly
so as to maximize profits, has profound significance. I have called her a
food paranoid. She gave away canned cat food because the date she saw on
the can was passed. Of course it was, it was the date it was canned.

Yogurt is an example of a fictitious expiry date. It can be eaten some
weeks after purchase if it looks good (no mould). The mould can be removed
from most hard cheeses without harm.

I will admit that meat and bakery goods spoil fairly quickly (and I am
careful with those) but there are hundreds of products with fake expiry
dates out there.

--

When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag
and carrying a cross.

Sinclair Lewis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnrYMafCzeE

Michel Boucher > wrote in
:

>
> My wife throws things out after the date has passed without checking to
> see if the product is still good or not. But then again even after 22
> years of my cooking and not a single instance of poisoning, she
> maintains that a date, stamped by an industry trying to get you to buy
> their wares quickly so as to maximize profits, has profound
> significance. I have called her a food paranoid. She gave away canned
> cat food because the date she saw on the can was passed. Of course it
> was, it was the date it was canned.
>
> Yogurt is an example of a fictitious expiry date. It can be eaten some
> weeks after purchase if it looks good (no mould). The mould can be
> removed from most hard cheeses without harm.
>
> I will admit that meat and bakery goods spoil fairly quickly (and I am
> careful with those) but there are hundreds of products with fake expiry
> dates out there.
>


There are the "Best By" dates, and there are the "Use Before" dates.

I also know someone who throws anything out that has an expired date on
it, even if it's only a few days.

Paranoid is a good word.......



--
Peter Lucas
Hobart
Tasmania

The act of feeding someone is an act of beauty,
whether it's a full Sunday roast or a jam sandwich,
but only when done with love.

Michel Boucher wrote:
> My wife throws things out after the date has passed without checking to see
> if the product is still good or not. But then again even after 22 years of
> my cooking and not a single instance of poisoning, she maintains that a
> date, stamped by an industry trying to get you to buy their wares quickly
> so as to maximize profits, has profound significance. I have called her a
> food paranoid. She gave away canned cat food because the date she saw on
> the can was passed. Of course it was, it was the date it was canned.
>
> Yogurt is an example of a fictitious expiry date. It can be eaten some
> weeks after purchase if it looks good (no mould). The mould can be removed
> from most hard cheeses without harm.
>
> I will admit that meat and bakery goods spoil fairly quickly (and I am
> careful with those) but there are hundreds of products with fake expiry
> dates out there.
>
Oh gee. One can use some common sense here. Some things last a
really long time--years after the expiration date.

--
Jean B.

Michel Boucher wrote:
> My wife throws things out after the date has passed without checking to see
> if the product is still good or not. But then again even after 22 years of
> my cooking and not a single instance of poisoning, she maintains that a
> date, stamped by an industry trying to get you to buy their wares quickly
> so as to maximize profits, has profound significance. I have called her a
> food paranoid. She gave away canned cat food because the date she saw on
> the can was passed. Of course it was, it was the date it was canned.
>
> Yogurt is an example of a fictitious expiry date. It can be eaten some
> weeks after purchase if it looks good (no mould). The mould can be removed
> from most hard cheeses without harm.
>
> I will admit that meat and bakery goods spoil fairly quickly (and I am
> careful with those) but there are hundreds of products with fake expiry
> dates out there.
>


It's a wife thing.

-Bob

On Sun, 21 Nov 2010 22:27:54 -0600, zxcvbob >
wrote:

> It's a wife thing.

For half a second there I thought you meant that wives had expiration
dates.

--

Never trust a dog to watch your food.

"Michel Boucher" > wrote in message
...
>
> My wife throws things out after the date has passed without checking to
> see
> if the product is still good or not. But then again even after 22 years
> of
> my cooking and not a single instance of poisoning, she maintains that a
> date, stamped by an industry trying to get you to buy their wares quickly
> so as to maximize profits, has profound significance. I have called her a
> food paranoid. She gave away canned cat food because the date she saw on
> the can was passed. Of course it was, it was the date it was canned.
>
If it's a best if used by date then the manufacturer is de-facto
guaranteeing the best quality product up to that date. While generally safe
to use after that date, the product quality will not be optimum. For
example, using a box of macaroni and cheese after the best by date will
result in the cheese not being as thick and rich, but it would still be
edible. Using ketchup past the best by date results in a more tart taste and
the ketchup is a darker red color, but again, it is still safe to consume.
Chips and crackers start to become stale after the best by date.

Some reasonable time period past the best by date has to be determined,
however. I once had packets of Realemon that were in storage for over a year
past the best by date and the yellow lemon juice started turning black. No,
I didn't even try to consume those, I tossed them in the garbage. Consider
that even boxes of something like Rice-A-Roni might need to be tossed some
time after the sell by date if it has dehydrated beef or chicken fat in the
ingredients for a certain flavor variety.

Use by or Expires is the date where the product would no longer be safe to
eat as determined by the manufacturer. Consume past the date at your own
risk, and frankly, I wouldn't risk that.

Also, in the case of cat food, most have a best by date in addition to the
date it was canned, and some brands only have a best by date.

> Yogurt is an example of a fictitious expiry date. It can be eaten some
> weeks after purchase if it looks good (no mould). The mould can be
> removed
> from most hard cheeses without harm.
>
I wouldn't chance yogurt, nor cottage cheese, nor cream cheese. I do agree
that mold can indeed be removed from hard cheeses but requires cutting at
least one inch off the block past the mold spot. But if it's been kept that
long, the cheese needs to be consumed shortly after the mold has been cut
off and probably should not be put back into storage once again. Generally,
I don't keep hard cheeses long enough for it to develop mold, though it's
also obvious that cheeses such as blue/bleu and Gorgonzola type of cheeses
are intended to have mold in them from the start.

> I will admit that meat and bakery goods spoil fairly quickly (and I am
> careful with those) but there are hundreds of products with fake expiry
> dates out there.
>
Also keep in mind that some states have a law that the expiry date should be
two years past the manufacture date. I think it's a fair guideline. Even
bottled water--though not a food product--can start to take on a plastic
taste near the best by date, and defintely after the best dy date.
Aseptically packaged drinks (some made with food such as fruit juices or
vegetable juices) can also develop a fermented taste some time after the
best by date.

sf wrote:
>
> On Sun, 21 Nov 2010 22:27:54 -0600, zxcvbob >
> wrote:
>
> > It's a wife thing.
>
> For half a second there I thought you meant that wives had expiration
> dates.

They do, when they start doing insane things like interpreting "best by"
dates as "expires this exact day" dates then that wife has expired and
it's time to find a replacement.

"Daniel W. Rouse Jr." > wrote in
:

> I wouldn't chance yogurt, nor cottage cheese, nor cream cheese. I do
> agree that mold can indeed be removed from hard cheeses but requires
> cutting at least one inch off the block past the mold spot. But if
> it's been kept that long, the cheese needs to be consumed shortly
> after the mold has been cut off and probably should not be put back
> into storage once again.

So no gorgonzola for you, then.

--

When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag
and carrying a cross.

Sinclair Lewis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnrYMafCzeE

Jean B. wrote:
> Michel Boucher wrote:
>> My wife throws things out after the date has passed without checking
>> to see if the product is still good or not. But then again even after
>> 22 years of my cooking and not a single instance of poisoning, she
>> maintains that a date, stamped by an industry trying to get you to buy
>> their wares quickly so as to maximize profits, has profound
>> significance.


For many foods they are a suggestion, for others a pretty good
guideline. Canned good keep pretty well beyond "use by" date
unless the can is bulging or spurts when you open it (a sign of
bacterial contamination or fermentation.)

For example, I had canned tomatoes that were out of date by a year
on the basement pantry shelf. They still tasted good and made a very
nice pasta sauce.

Milk, cream, chicken, fish, packaged fruit and vegetables spoil
pretty quickly but they usually show signs of spoilage (odor, mold,
texture, etc.)

gloria p

"Michel Boucher" > wrote in message
...
> "Daniel W. Rouse Jr." > wrote in
> :
>
>> I wouldn't chance yogurt, nor cottage cheese, nor cream cheese. I do
>> agree that mold can indeed be removed from hard cheeses but requires
>> cutting at least one inch off the block past the mold spot. But if
>> it's been kept that long, the cheese needs to be consumed shortly
>> after the mold has been cut off and probably should not be put back
>> into storage once again.
>
> So no gorgonzola for you, then.
>
Gorgonzola is an excellent cheese. Remember, I stated:

Generally, I don't keep hard cheeses long enough for it to develop mold,
though it's also obvious that cheeses such as blue/bleu and Gorgonzola type
of cheeses are intended to have mold in them from the start.