33% eat food past expiration date (Parade Magazine-What America Really Eats)

[underpants]

I know Parade magazine but there is SOME good news here-more people are planting their own gardens.

-----------------

Our poll also revealed the truth about what readers do behind closed doors—of their kitchens. More than 70% say they always wash fresh fruits and vegetables before eating, but many admit they consider expiration dates only a suggestion. Some 40% will eat bread, and 30% canned goods, past the stamped date. In fact, a third are willing to eat anything that looks and smells OK, even if the expiration date is past. That’s a bad idea, according to the American Dietetic Association (ADA), which recommends tossing milk a week after opening, regardless of the expiration date; getting rid of yogurt seven to 10 days after purchase; and keeping eggs in the fridge for no longer than three weeks.

But the cost of healthy foods like vegetables also has gone through the roof. As a result, 21% of those surveyed have joined a national trend and are planting their own vegetable gardens.

Where’s the beef? Not on the plates of a whopping 59% of those surveyed, who are turning their backs on expensive cuts of meats

At least 53% would pick up and eat either hamburgers, hot dogs, pizza, ice-cream cones, pretzels, or “anything, as long as I picked it up within five seconds.” Registered dietitian and ADA spokesperson Elisa Zied cites new research that food actually can stay bacteria-free for up to 30 seconds. “Still, depending on whether it fell in my kitchen, in a restaurant, or on the ground outside,” says Zied, “ the ‘ick’ factor would probably prevent me from letting my kids eat it.”

PARADE readers have their own idea of what constitutes adventurous eating: 21% say the most exotic food they’ve tried is sushi, followed by 19% who cite Chinese takeout or other ethnic food.

[bahrbearian]

1. What doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger.

[wartrace]

2. I'll eat expired food if it smells OK & no mold on it.

Nothing wrong with doing that in my opinion. I won't BUY expired food at the store though.

[Liberal_in_LA]

5. Then you need to be really careful in the 99cent store. They thrive on expired and just expired food

particularly the dairy, frozen, refrigerated food sections.

[Vickers]

21. Aw man, the other day I was in a dollar store and saw

a tin of oysters that was from China.

Think about it:

a. dollar store

b. shellfish

c. China

It's like the hat-trick of food poisoning.

[Liberal_in_LA]

40. lol. I hear ya.

[KittyWampus]

42. funny and kind of scary. I lol'ed and then thought about it and got kind of queasy

[K8-EEE]

50. GROSS!!

I used to get the canned water chestnuts for stir-frys until I realized omg they are ALL FROM CHINA and I had just read about the poison water etc. there, and I'm getting WATER CHESTNUTS GROWN IN THAT WATER AND PACKED IN THAT WATER.

Ugh!

[MrsBrady]

3. the expiration dates are for food producers and retailers

and a guide to the consumer.

retailers have to pull them by the dates, but that doesn't mean it IS bad after the date when you get it home.

I think his is totally BS. They are trying to stimulate business for the food industry by scaring the public.

[surrealAmerican]

39. Exactly. It's "last date of sale" on food items.

You read the date when you are buying the food, and factor in how long it will be before you eat it.
I think they may have been making up some of these statistics. I know I usually don't even look at the date on my foods unless it looks or smells like something might be wrong with them.

[SmileyRose]

4. The ADA can bite me. Seriously.

I bought a bag of dried beans last week with a date on it. Now come on.

My mother routinely cut the thinnest slice of the moldy edges off block cheese, cut the rotten out of produce, gave the moldy edges of bread to the birds, cut the green part off the country ham when we were lucky enough to get it........

Seriously, we have become a nation full of anti-microbial everything wusses.

I saw a TV article the other day about grocery stores spending millions on gadgets to run every single shopping cart through a clorox cart wash between each and every customer so someone doesn't feel all icky about setting a gallon of milk down in the top of the basket where someone else's toddler with possible poop inside the diaper sat yesterday.

Wusses.

Look if someone has a severe immune system problem then they do need to take extra precautions, but for the vast majority of us -- wusses.

[demokatgurrl]

6. Also the "best by" date is not an expiration date

That IS just a suggestion, that the food will probably taste best if eaten by that date. But it can certainly be fresh, and taste fine, after that.

[Johnny Noshoes]

9. "Seriously, we have become a nation full of anti-microbial everything wusses."

I think this obsession with germs can actually cause us more harm. We have an immune system for a reason. Yes people whose systems are fragile or compromised by disease should certainly be careful. Reasonable hygiene practices should be sufficient for most people. Being exposed to germs within reason gives the immune system a chance to build defenses against common pathogens. Over use of all sorts of cleaning substances could actually make you in the long run vulnerable to simple infections.

[antigone382]

51. And in the end it allows more resistant microbe strains to take over.

In normal circumstances the weaker strains of various bacteria are equally competetive with the resistant strains and help to keep their numbers in check. Using strong antibacterial products and antibiotics on a regular basis kills the normal, less-resistant strains and leaves behind the "superbugs," as the media likes to call them, who now don't have to compete for resources with their weaker kin. The stronger soaps and detergents should only be used when you're dealing with something really nasty--and you'll want to make sure you are washing in extremely hot water for as long or longer than the directions specify. Similarly, antibiotics should be prescribed rarely and taken exactly as instructed until you finish all the dosage--NOT until you "feel better."

[Common Sense Party]

13. I think everyone should try living in a third-world country

Or even a "second" world country...

You'd be surprised what you can eat and drink without getting sick.

We are hypersensitive scaredycats here.

[SoCalDem]

47. Ain't that the truth.. In Jamaica, we shopped at a little store

and always bought "the least moldy bread"..Neither of us died.:)

and in Panama, we bought meat at the open air market..usually from the guy who used to cover his raw meat with cheesecloth to keep the flies away :)..again..no one died.,.

we also bought food on the street from vendors who spoke languages we did not understand..it was tasty and cheap..and no one died

Stamped expiration dates on products are a marketing tool, and a dodge against lawsuits....and a clever way to increase prices, since stores cannot "stock up" before a price increase :evilgrin:..

That said, it's probably not a great idea to chisel a brick of 1994 Kelloggs Corn Pops for breakfast with some Oct 2003 milk :)

[shanti]

32. exactly

europeans eat lots of things we in the u.s. wouldn't...and don't have these kind of hangups.

[Hawkowl]

49. Hear! hear!.......LOL

I agree 100% People don't seem to understand that we NEED bacteria. We have over a pound of it in our digestive tract happily assisting us in our digestion.

I remember my grandmother doing the same thing as your mother! She would also remind us as she cut the mold off the bread that this was actually how penicillin was made!

Wusses!

[Retrograde]

52. I still do

cut the moldy ends of cheese, and trim veggies. Eggs can last a lot longer than the so-called expiration date, although they may not whip as well - if that's important. If something looks obviously bad - like it has developed a weird color or texture - I'll toss it, but I expect that ham to last a couple of weeks.

Dried beans can germinate after several years, as I've found from experience. They were bred by people to be dried and stored for long periods of time. I've yet to see dried beans that didn't plump up nicely after an overnight soaking. In fact, people have been working on how to preserve foods long before the invention of agriculture.

As for shopping carts, even if there was a poopy diaper in one, E. coli doesn't have the magical abilities to wiggle past all the packaging food comes in these days. By all means take proper precautions with food - washing your hands before handling it is probably more useful than worrying about every stray germ.

[sendero]

54. I agree....

... particularly with canned foods which they mention.

Canned food is fine to eat well past it's expiration date, and many canned foods don't even have a date.

I've stored canned foods like soups and vegetabies, and eaten them at three years, they were fine.

With other foods it is mostly a matter of common sense. For centuries, people did not have refrigerators or expiration dates or homogenization.

They survived because we have a sense of smell and sight to sort out what is edible.

[Codeine]

58. THANK YOU!

Jesus Jumped-Up Christ on a pogo stick, how on Earth do these folks think people managed to survive in the past? Slightly past-its-prime food ain't gonna hurt you. I'm always astounded that people think food goes from being wholesome and nutritious to horrible deadly poison at 12:01AM on the expiration date.

[Lex]

7. Lots of times, those are "sell by" dates anyway.

nt

[deepthought42]

8. I can't afford to waste food.

Though I do try to eat perishable food before it expires. If you freeze bread, it lasts longer. It's sad I know this...

[Liberal_in_LA]

10. Nothing sad about being efficient with your food.

[Liberal_in_LA]

11. Nothing sad about being efficient with your food.

[Kali]

14. why is it sad that you know that?

learning to be frugal is a good thing. we waste so much in this culture - THAT is what is sad.

[deepthought42]

16. Sad because it takes me weeks to go through a

loaf of bread. Sad because I'm a broke college student living off of scholarship money. But I am glad not to be wasting food.

[NashVegas]

18. I Keep Bread In the Freezer Too

If I have rolls I know I won't eat before they start to harden, into the freezer they go!

Crusty artisan breads are bought sliced, and frozen as soon as I bring them home. The crust is still perfect when it thaws.

[SmileyRose]

20. You are sad to have a chance to go to college?

I know I'm being an asshole here and I'm sorry you feel times are a little tougher than you are accustomed to having, but if the free money isn't enough and you feel downtrodded over having to put your bread in the freezer (though why that's a problem I don't understand) then I suggest you start looking for alternate methods of income. I know the economy is pretty tight and getting a job might be difficult, but doubling or tripling up or even quading up on roomies will help cut expenses. Surely there's something you can do so you aren't sad about the indignities of having to thaw out your bread.

and yes, I know I'm a heartless asshole on this. It's just that in my house having extra bread in the freezer, actually anything in the freezer, has always been a rare luxury.

[uppityperson]

26. talk about mis-reading and you are right about what you are doing.

Missing the point and "yes, I know I'm a heartless asshole on this". Why does it take someone a wk to go through a loaf of bread?

"free money"

[SmileyRose]

27. Like I said

I'm the first to admit that a college kid lucky enough to score enough scholarship money to cover college AND nominal living expense complaining about hard times does bring out my inner asshole. If you look over my posts, it's not a common thing for me. This is just one of those few things that rubs me the wrong way.

Not long after I joined DU a young recent college grad was lamenting their BS in Art History didn't translate into walking right into the $60,000 a year dream job like she expected and how the whole world was just so fucked up because she was stuck with her full time Starbucks job. I couldn't help it, my inner asshole just about climbed through the interwebs. I exaggerate a little. She graduated last December, and this was in July. So it had been a full 7 months of torture at Starbucks for the poor kid - and yes, she had amassed quite a pile of student loans that I'm sure a starbucks salary made it difficult to make ends meet, especially at the lifestyle level she expected.

While I realize there are many people all over the world who would gladly trade their lot in life for mine, and I do constantly try to find the blessings and opportunities I have, my life with violence in my home, a loved one dying my inches before my very eyes and very little access to medical care, 70 hr work weeks at $10 or less an hour, never having had an opportunity for college - working to secure funding for the homeless every day - seeing way too many people in this country eating out of dumpsters (thank God I am not one) - working my butt off in my garden so I can give away food to people who need it - I know I am a snotty bitch sometimes - but in my life bread in the freezer because there aren't enough people living at my house to get it eaten before it goes stale is pretty trivial on the list.

[uppityperson]

28. I'm a college grad, yrs of experience, barely making it.

I wish I could get a scholarship but have a bs already. My kid is trying to figure out how to get to college, will help as best I can but going into debt for it here. So kid lives frugally anyway, as do we.

Just saying don't let the envy get in the way of realizing that even if someone has scholarships (which are difficult to get) doesn't mean they are used to living high or want to. Maybe bread is a treat, was for me at a couple points.

To the subject of outdated food, I'm always cruising the dairy section for marked down yogurt to freeze. Yes, it gets watery, but nice to have it.

[DemReadingDU]

30. yogurt lasts almost forever

I've eaten yogurt 6 months past the expiration date. Tastes fine. Occasionally (fresh or expired), I will get a yogurt with a fuzzy mold on it and I will throw that away.

Eggs will keep a month in the refrigerator past the expiration date.

If the food doesn't smell bad, and there's no mold nor bugs, then I feel it is still safe to eat.

[SmileyRose]

36. the whole point of yogurt is preservation.

when yogurt is so old it starts to separate, that's when you put in in a strainer lined with cheesecloth over a bowl in the fridge. that buys at least another month. This I know from the old farm days when all of a sudden you have way too much goat milk to use in time and need the nutrition of it 4 months from now. :)

These days yogurt is an expensive luxury we rarely get.

[DemReadingDU]

37. Most times I make my own yogurt

Lots cheaper, and it's really easy.

But sometimes I have coupons and splurge on buying Dannon or Yoplait cherry yogurt for husband. His favorite!

Once I have bought a can of cherry pie filling to mix in with the homemade yogurt, but husband decided to eat the whole can of pie filling (without the yogurt)

:P

[SmileyRose]

59. Busting out laughing - we must have the same husband.

My guy is a cherry nutball. For his birthday every year I give him a can of cherry pie filling. You'd think I gave him the Mona Lisa, the Hope Diamond and the Moon all rolled into one.

[KittyWampus]

44. DU'er Malaise who is in Jamaica (?) said people bury eggs and they'll keep for a very long time

[Quantess]

29. I feel like I'm watching you and the college student fight over a crust of bread.

I think it's rude to berate anyone for saying they have to eat meagerly, whether that person is in college, or whether they have 14 children.

[SmileyRose]

33. I didn't read it that way.

we ration food at my house and it's caused actual violence more than once. None of us would complain about having to freeze bread. We'd just be glad there some in there.

Though as uppityperson said, perhaps the poster was only commenting that bread freezes well, not actually complaining. I was not berating anyone for rationing food. I was reacting how incredibly blessed beyond all reason someone is to have the financial freedom to go to college on scholarship without being eyeball deep in loans and jobs. Having a thaw out a couple slices of bread every few days seems awfully trivial to me by comparison. And I did say, if times are that tough where there is really not enough food, then perhaps a change in lifestyle can be made to take the financial pressure off.

As I said more than once, I'm fully aware I have a knee jerk to what I perceive to be whinie college kids. IMHO a full scholarship is such an incredible gift that rationing food is a very small price to pay. But again, I am fully aware that I am a judgemental bitch on this one particular thing.

[Quantess]

38. It's not as easy as it sounds.

College is so expensive, that the scholarship money is just a drop in the bucket, usually. Books are extortion-high priced. Young people who work generally have a better standard of living than the ones in college--if their parents aren't rich.

I put myself through college, and I had a hard time getting enough to eat sometimes. I tried to get food stamps but I was denied because I was a student. There is the option of getting a job, but you have to weigh that against taking a full load of classes and getting through college in less time. Students have to decide whether working while going to school is more cost efficient than just going to school.

He didn't say it was a full scholarhip, which means it probably isn't. He did say he's broke, though, and I believe him. :)

[KittyWampus]

43. my Mom grew up poor. Her Dad made Nana sprinkle water on stale bread

[glowing]

15. I did that the other day.. It was a special on bread.. one out, one in the freezer.

I know that because I lived in the country, and you couldn't just "stop" by the store when you were out of something.. along with meat.. freeze it.

[deepthought42]

17. Yeah...

If I figure I'm not gonna use it for a few days, I'll put it in the freezer until I want to use it. Luckily it defrosts quickly.

[glowing]

19. As long as it isn't over a month old, it still tastes fresh a week or two latter..

[Mojorabbit]

12. I have eaten food past it's expiraton date

for over 50 years. If the can is not bulging and it smells and looks good, I go for it.
We throw out so much food in this country. It is criminal.

[FarCenter]

22. If our digestive systems were that delicate, our species would have died out

long before fire was invented.

[phusion]

23. Wait, bread has an expiration date?

Who would have guessed? Just don't eat the mold...

What a scam...And eggs last a helluva lot longer than their "expiration dates" would lead you to believe.

It's like the expiration dates on pain relievers and common OTC drugs.

[supernova]

24. Lots of times, it's just that the nutritive value

isn't prime past the date, that's so with flour and other types of dry goods. As long as it's not buggy, it's still good to use.

They still are fine to eat, just not as nutritious as when fresh.

[shraby]

25. When I had kids at home and they went through

a gallon of milk a day, I'd buy for the week and put the extra in the freezer..be sure to put a couple of cups of milk from each gallon into another container though..the milk expands and bulges the container almost to the breaking point if left full to freeze.

[shanti]

31. yes, i probably

eat expired food too. i have a habit of buying canned goods and other stuff for my pantry that sounds good at the time i bought it, but don't eat it for some time after. by then, it's expired. i do look it up and see if it's "ok" to eat, like the tuna in the vacuum sealed pacs. smells ok, no mold - i usually eat it. otherwise, it ends up in the freezer for an even longer stay!

but sushi is the most adventurous food eaten?? probably california rolls too! good grief...

[uppityperson]

34. 21% sushi, 19% chinese take out was most adventurous.

:rofl: Chinese take out is adventurous?

[shanti]

35. i know, huh!?

probably panda express too :hi:

[Retrograde]

53. it's Parade

the magazine that comes with the Sunday newspaper. I don't think they cater to an overly adventurous audience.

Still, more people try sushi than Chinese takeout? I find that hard to buy.

[nichomachus]

41. The "expiration" date really isn't an expiration date

I mean, the food doesn't become poison at midnight on the "expiration" date. It just means that's the date the store should take it off the shelves. It's often good long after that, although for some foods, the taste may suffer after a while.

Beer and soda, especially. Be careful when buying beer and soda on sale, unless you're going to drink it soon. If you stock up at a sale and then let it sit for a while, it may end up tasting pretty crappy. So, when buying stuff at a big sale, check the sell-by date. It will still be good for a while after the date, but may lose some quality after that.

The date is kind of made up anyway, so putting a lot of stock in it is kind of foolish. Just use your head.

[unblock]

45. expiration dates don't even have a single meaning, it depends on the food

some are the date it should be SOLD by, some are the date it should be USED by.
for the ones that should be USED by, some become dangerous when expired, others simply become unappetizing.

moreover, the dates set are chosen to be somewhat conservative, i.e., to err on the side of encouraging people to throw out perfectly good food, to reduce the risk of illness or just disappointed customers.

remember, industry has an incentive to keep the expiration dates close, to encourage you to buy again rather than use something old.
government also has an incentive to keep the dates close, they don't benefit either by having you use older food.


where there's legitimate risk of illness (opened daily or meat product, eggs, etc.) i'm careful. otherwise, not.

PASTA has an expiration date. CANNED FOODS have expiration dates. ARE YOU KIDDING ME??

[DemReadingDU]

48. bottled water

has expiration dates, even store-brand gallon jugs

:eyes:

[Odin2005]

57. IIRC isn't that because algae and cyanobacteria can start growing in the bottles after a while?

I swear I've heard something to that effect.

[Odin2005]

46. The ADA needs the shut up.

I agree with many posters that we have become a society of microbiphobic wusses, a phobia intentionally forced upon us by the makers of soaps, bathing supplies, disinfectants, etc. in order to sell more products. I've seen several books out there about how our hyper-sanitary society is causing an increase in the incidence of asthma in kids because of an inadequately "primed" immune system.

[123infinity]

55. We're also making bacteria evolve much more quickly by using so many antibacterial products.

Wash dishes with it? How fucking insane can we get?
:eyes:

[Odin2005]

56. Yep. It's so incredibly stupid.

It's a good example of why religious people attacking the teaching of Evolution are so dangerous.

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

61. Sounds like the ADA is in bed with BigPharma!

Don't eat that out of date food because it's bad for you... now if you get sick, just go to your RX and buy some more drugs....

[1]

60. yeah, this is no "sign of the times"...

since forever, if the first few slices of a bread loaf show some "blue", i toss those few and eat the rest quickly.

the cheese argument holds almost no water. what? you buy a block of blue cheese and immediately toss it because of the mold? if my cheese shows some surface mold, i cut off the offending surface and enjoy the rest.


there is this show on fox called "ramsay's kitchen nightmares" that i cannot even watch anymore. the disgusting conditions that exist in most restaurants would turn you off from ever eating in a restaurant again.

and if you think "not my restaurant!"...

heh. think again.



if an apple has a dark spot? cut it out. if the chicken or fish smells "fresh" beyond what a "date" on a label says?

i eat it...