A person wastes food of about 36 pounds each month, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and this waste is unnecessary as food can still be eaten 18 months past their date of expiration.
"Many products may have a sell-by date of, say, April 1, but they could be good in your pantry for another 12 or 18 months. And by throwing those out, what you're doing is you're contributing to food waste in the United States," USDA spokesperson Chris Bernstein said in a video posted on YouTube.
The USDA website outlines four types of expiration dates: "Use by," "Best if used by," "Sell by" for store owners and "Closed or coded date" for manufacturers. But these dates are not specific "safety dates." Apparently, the expiration dates marked on many food items are not regulated, and they're not always the most accurate gauge for freshness. While soiled food, such as rotten fruit or a curdled milk, should go straight to the trash bin, other food items may hold even after their "best before" dates.
The USDA is encouraging consumers to be more decisive about tossing out expired products. In order to help with this, the agency, together with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched the "Foodkeeper" app, which educates users about the best ways to handle expired food and curb wastage. The app is part of the U.S. Food Waste Challenge program initiated by these two agencies.
Foodkeeper has over 400 food items in its data and can be linked to a user's personal calendar for proper monitoring. The app, which can be downloaded for Android and Apple devices, has storage and cooking tips, recycling ideas and a tip for where to connect with food donors.
Take a look at the video that the USDA prepared below:
