Is your food expired? Know the difference between ‘Use By’ and ‘Best Before’ date

When buying a packaged food product online or in a store, checking its manufacturing date, expiry date, 'use by' date, or 'best before' date is imperative, as several reports continue to emerge about consumers being sold old, expired products.

Earlier in July, India's food regulator FSSAI issued nine notices to Swiggy Instamart after a series of consumer complaints alleged delivery of expired, spoiled and contaminated food products, putting the spotlight on food safety standards in the country's rapidly expanding quick commerce sector.

Recently, the Uttar Pradesh Food Safety and Drug Administration department reportedly directed food business to clearly declare the actual manufacturing or processing date on packaged good products.

According to the Times of India, this directive was issued after special inspections of food manufacturing units revealed that food products were stored for extended periods after production.

Later, they would repack it into smaller packets and write that date as the manufacturing date. It was alleged that some relabelers and repackers were also following this practice.

"Such practices can make it difficult for consumers to determine the actual age of a product and its remaining shelf life," the report added.

Food safety officials were quoted as saying that a product's shelf life begins on the date it is manufactured or processed.

Understanding product labels: A glossary

Besides the manufacturing date, product labels also mention either the "use by" or "best before date" instead of the date of expiry. What do they mean, and what's the difference? Here we explain:

1. Best before date: According to FSSAI, “Best before date” means the date which signifies the end of the period under any stated storage conditions during which the food product shall remain fully marketable and shall retain any specific qualities for which tacit or express claims have been made.

Beyond that date, the food may still be perfectly safe to consume, though its quality may have diminished. However, the product shall not be sold if, at any, stage the product become unsafe.

2. “Use by” or “expiry” means the date after which the product may not remain safe, and the food product probably will not have the quality of safety attributes normally expected by the consumers, and the food shall not be sold or distributed for human consumption.

3. “Date of manufacture” means the date on which the food products become the product as described.

4. “Date of packaging” means the date on which the food product is placed in the immediate container in which it will be ultimately sold.

5. “Lot number” or “code number” or “batch number” means the identification mark depicted shown on the label by the use of numeral or alphabet or combinations thereof, brief preceded by “Lot number” or “code number” or “batch number” or any unique identification marks such as Batch No., B. No., L. No., Lot No., Code, LN, CN or BN, B No by which the food can be traced in manufacture and identified in distribution.

6. “Package/container” means a pre-packed box, bottle, jar, casket, tin, barrel, case, pouch, receptacle, sack, bag, wrapper or such other things in which an article of food is packed.

7. “Recommended dietary allowances (RDA)” means the average daily dietary nutrient intake level sufficient to meet the nutrient requirement of nearly all (97 to 98 per cent.) healthy individuals in a particular life stage and gender group.

8. “Retail pack” or “Retail unit” means the packages which are intended for sale to ultimate consumer for the purpose of consumption of the food.

"Non-retail containers” means any container that is not intended to be offered for direct sale to the consumer. The food in the non-retail container is for further business activities before being offered to the consumer.

9. “Multi-unit package” means a package containing two or more individually packaged or labelled units of the same food commodity ofidentical and / or different, net quantity intended and displayed for retail sale either in individual units or package as a whole.

10. "Assorted pack” means any package or container containing multiple units of different food products intended and displayed for retail sale.

About the Author

Akriti Anand is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint. She is a digital journalist with more than six years in the news industry.<br><br> In her current role, she covers both national and international politics, and also keeps a close watch on the latest trends in science and space exploration. <br><br> Akriti joined the LiveMint team in October 2023. Before this, she built a strong career at other major media houses. She worked as a senior sub-editor at India Today. Later, she moved to CNBCTV-18. There, she covered high-pressure topics like breaking news and major elections. She spent much of her time analysing Parliament bills and complex political debates. She is also a skilled editor who knows how to polish a story for a digital audience. <br><br> One of her career highlights happened at CNBCTV-18. She made her first television debut during the Chandrayaan-3 mission. She also provided special on-air coverage for the Karnataka Elections. <br><br> When she is not busy with breaking news, Akriti loves to write explainers and interview experts on a wide range of issues. She also enjoys making complex space missions easy for everyone to understand. <br><br> Her education helps her tackle these diverse subjects. She holds a BA in English Literature, a Postgraduate Diploma in Mass Communication, and a Master’s degree in Development Studies. She is currently expanding her knowledge in climate journalism.<br><br> Connect with Akriti here<br> LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/akriti-anand-868285199">https://www.linkedin.com/in/akriti-anand-868285199</a><br> Twitter/X: <a href="https://x.com/AkritiAnand7">https://x.com/AkritiAnand7</a><br> Email: akriti.anand@htdigital.in