Food expiration is a soft science at best and those dates stamped on the side of groceries suggest we toss food long before it’s actually spoiled. Before you throw out those last few eggs or jar of peanut butter, know that food expiration dates only tell a small part of the story about when it becomes unfit for consumption. If you know you’re dealing with expired food — moldy, stale, discolored or curdled — you can always use a countertop composter to keep organic waste out of the dump. But before you decide to trash t, brush up some skills to help discern when food is and isn’t expired so you don’t discard perfectly good eats. Americans produce 325 pounds of food waste per person, per year, and much of that is discarded food thought to be expired and no longer fit for consumption. Some of this can be attributed to food scraps. Concerned? Much of that food waste can be blamed on tossing away food that may still be safe for consumption, but whose printed expiration date has passed. Throwing away potentially unspoiled food isn’t only a food waste issue, but a financial waste issue. “I’ve seen a statistic that if a consumer really did more diligence ag…
- Food expiration is a soft science
- Food expiration dates do not always indicate spoilage
- Improperly discarded food contributes to waste and financial loss