As awareness grows around the world about , one culprit in particular is drawing scrutiny: B次元官网网址渂est beforeB次元官网网址� labels.

Manufacturers have used the labels for decades to estimate peak freshness. Unlike B次元官网网址渦se byB次元官网网址� labels, which are found on perishable foods like meat and dairy, B次元官网网址渂est beforeB次元官网网址� labels have nothing to do with safety and may encourage consumers to throw away food thatB次元官网网址檚 perfectly fine to eat.

B次元官网网址淭hey read these dates and then they assume that itB次元官网网址檚 bad, they canB次元官网网址檛 eat it and they toss it, when these dates donB次元官网网址檛 actually mean that theyB次元官网网址檙e not edible or theyB次元官网网址檙e not still nutritious or tasty,B次元官网网址� said Patty Apple, a manager at Food Shift, an Alameda, California, nonprofit that collects and uses expired or imperfect foods.

To tackle the problem, major U.K. chains like Waitrose, SainsburyB次元官网网址檚 and Marks & Spencer recently removed B次元官网网址渂est beforeB次元官网网址� labels from prepackaged fruit and vegetables. The European Union is expected to announce a revamp to its labeling laws by the end of this year; itB次元官网网址檚 considering abolishing B次元官网网址渂est beforeB次元官网网址� labels altogether.

In the U.S., thereB次元官网网址檚 no similar push to scrap . But there is growing momentum to standardize the language on date labels to help educate buyers about , including a push from big grocers and food companies and bipartisan legislation in Congress.

B次元官网网址淚 do think that the level of support for this has grown tremendously,B次元官网网址� said Dana Gunders, executive director of ReFED, a New York-based nonprofit that studies food waste.

The United Nations estimates that 17% of global food production is wasted each year; most of that comes from households. In the U.S., as much as 35% of food available goes uneaten, ReFED says. That adds up to a lot of wasted energy B次元官网网址� including the water, land and labor that goes into the food production B次元官网网址� and higher greenhouse gas emissions when unwanted food goes into landfills.

There are many reasons food gets wasted, from large portion sizes to customersB次元官网网址� rejection of imperfect produce. But ReFED estimates that 7% of U.S. food waste B次元官网网址� or 4 million tons annually B次元官网网址� is due to consumer confusion over B次元官网网址渂est beforeB次元官网网址� labels.

Date labels were widely adopted by manufacturers in the 1970s to answer consumersB次元官网网址� concerns about product freshness. There are no federal rules governing them, and manufacturers are allowed to determine when they believe their products will taste best. Only infant formula is required to have a B次元官网网址渦se byB次元官网网址� date in the U.S.

Since 2019, the Food and Drug Administration B次元官网网址� which regulates around 80% of U.S. food B次元官网网址� has recommended that manufacturers use the labels B次元官网网址渂est if used byB次元官网网址� for freshness and B次元官网网址渦se byB次元官网网址� for perishable goods, based on surveys showing that consumers understand those phrases.

But the effort is voluntary, and the language on labels continues to vary widely, from B次元官网网址渟ell byB次元官网网址� to B次元官网网址渆njoy byB次元官网网址� to B次元官网网址渇reshest before.B次元官网网址� A survey released in June by researchers at the University of Maryland found at least 50 different date labels used on U.S. grocery shelves and widespread confusion among customers.

B次元官网网址淢ost people believe that if it says B次元官网网址榮ell by,B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址榖est byB次元官网网址� or B次元官网网址榚xpiration,B次元官网网址� you canB次元官网网址檛 eat any of them. ThatB次元官网网址檚 not actually accurate,B次元官网网址� said Richard Lipsit, who owns a Grocery Outlet store in Pleasanton, California, that specializes in discounted food.

Lipsit said milk can be safely consumed up to a week after its B次元官网网址渦se byB次元官网网址� date. Gunders said canned goods and many other packaged foods can be safely eaten for years after their B次元官网网址渂est beforeB次元官网网址� date. The FDA suggests consumers look for changes in color, consistency or texture to determine if foods are all right to eat.

B次元官网网址淥ur bodies are very well equipped to recognize the signs of decay, when food is past its edible point,B次元官网网址� Gunders said. B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e lost trust in those senses and weB次元官网网址檝e replaced it with trust in these dates.B次元官网网址�

Some U.K. grocery chains are actively encouraging customers to use their senses. Morrisons removed B次元官网网址渦se byB次元官网网址� dates from most store-brand milk in January and replaced them with a B次元官网网址渂est beforeB次元官网网址� label. Co-op, another grocery chain, did the same to its store-brand yogurts.

ItB次元官网网址檚 a change some shoppers support. Ellie Spanswick, a social media marketer in Falmouth, England, buys produce, eggs and other groceries at farm stands and local shops when she can. The food has no labels, she said, but itB次元官网网址檚 easy to see that itB次元官网网址檚 fresh.

B次元官网网址淭he last thing we need to be doing is wasting more food and money because it has a label on it telling us itB次元官网网址檚 past being good for eating,B次元官网网址� Spanswick said.

But not everyone agrees. Ana Wetrov of London, who runs a home renovation business with her husband, worries that without labels, staff might not know which items should be removed from shelves. She recently bought a pineapple and only realized after she cut into it that it was rotting in the middle.

B次元官网网址淲e have had dates on those packages for the last 20 years or so. Why fix it when itB次元官网网址檚 not broken?B次元官网网址� Wetrov said.

Some U.S. chains B次元官网网址� including Walmart B次元官网网址� have shifted their store brands to standardized B次元官网网址渂est if used byB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址渦se byB次元官网网址� labels. The Consumer Brands Association B次元官网网址� which represents big food companies like General Mills and Dole B次元官网网址� also encourages members to use those labels.

B次元官网网址淯niformity makes it much more simple for our companies to manufacture products and keep the prices lower,B次元官网网址� said Katie Denis, the associationB次元官网网址檚 vice president of communications.

In the absence of federal policy, states have stepped in with their own laws, frustrating food companies and grocers. Florida and Nevada, for example, require B次元官网网址渟ell byB次元官网网址� dates on shellfish and dairy, and Arizona requires B次元官网网址渂est byB次元官网网址� or B次元官网网址渦se byB次元官网网址� dates on eggs, according to Emily Broad Lieb, director of the Food Law and Policy Clinic at Harvard Law School.

The confusion has led some companies, like Unilever, to support legislation currently in Congress that would standardize U.S. date labels and ensure that food could be donated to rescue organizations even after its quality date. At least 20 states currently prohibit the sale or donation of food after the date listed on the label because of liability fears, Lieb said.

Clearer labeling and donation rules could help nonprofits like Food Shift, which trains chefs using rescued food. It even makes dog treats from overripe bananas, recovered chicken fat and spent grain from a brewer, Apple said.

B次元官网网址淲e definitely need to be focusing more on doing these small actions like addressing expiration date labels, because even though itB次元官网网址檚 such a tiny part of this whole food waste issue, it can be very impactful,B次元官网网址� Apple said.

B次元官网网址擠ee-ann Durbin, The Associated Press