{"id":25842,"date":"2017-12-29T14:12:35","date_gmt":"2017-12-29T19:12:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev-gordon-food-service-canada.pantheonsite.io\/ideas\/how-should-date-codes-be-interpreted\/"},"modified":"2025-11-21T14:07:50","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T19:07:50","slug":"how-should-date-codes-be-interpreted","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/how-should-date-codes-be-interpreted\/","title":{"rendered":"How should date codes be interpreted?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-we-demystify-best-before-and-expiration-dates-to-help-you-understand-when-food-is-at-its-best\">We demystify best-before and expiration dates to help you understand when food is at its best.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s important to understand what information the specific type of date code tells you about a food or drink. A common misconception is that a date code indicates a product\u2019s safety. In most cases, this is not true. Date codes relate more to quality than safety. &nbsp;In general, there are two types of date codes: best-before dates and expiration dates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-best-before-dates\">Best-before dates<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Best-before dates are most commonly seen on food and drinks. They provide a calendar date to identify when a food will be at its best quality. Once a food has passed the best before date, there may be changes in its flavour, freshness or texture. Best-before dates are legally required on products that have a shelf life of 90 days or less. Manufacturers must also provide storage instructions with these products. On products whose shelf life exceeds 90 days, the best-before date is not mandatory, but most manufacturers still include it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Manufacturers often times will also add other dates to the packaging, but these would be in addition to the best before date, not as a replacement. Some examples are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>\u201cSell-by\u201d<\/strong> dates tell a store how long to display a for-sale product.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>\u201cPrepared\/Manufactured On\u201d<\/strong> dates are often used on foods that are prepared on-site.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>\u201cUse-by\u201d<\/strong> dates are the last date recommended to use the product. This date is determined by the manufacturer. On infant formula, this is a safe-to-consume-by date.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>\u201cFreeze by\u201d<\/strong> date indicates by when an item should be frozen.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Just remember that even though best-before dating is not indicative of food safety, it can be helpful in understanding if the quality of the item is impacted.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-expiration-dates\">Expiration Dates<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Expiration dates indicate the last day a food will retain its nutritional value. Health Canada requires that all foods for special dietary uses have expiration dates on the packaging. These foods are used as food substitutes so it is important that their nutritional value is intact when consumed. The following foods fall under the foods for special dietary uses definition:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Infant formula<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Nutritional supplements<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Meal replacements<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Foods sold specifically for very low-energy diets\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Formulated liquid diets\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether a product has a best before date or an expiration date, one common rule is that the date stamp cannot be on the bottom of the package. So any date on the bottom of packages is generally not for the consumer of the product. The codes on the bottom of packaging might be lot or batch codes that manufacturers us for product recalls or to rotate stock. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-beyond-date-codes\">Beyond date codes<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Since date codes focus more on quality, here are few food safety tips to remember.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Canned foods are generally safe to consume as long as they are not exposed to freezing temperatures and are stored at room temperature 10\u00b0C to 21\u00b0C (50\u00b0F to 70\u00b0F). Cans that are dented, bulging or rusted should be discarded.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Canned foods with high acidity (e.g. tomatoes and fruits) maintain their best quality for 12 to 18 months.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Canned foods with lower acidity (e.g. meats and vegetables) will keep for two to five years.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Any potentially hazardous foods can be kept for two to three days if it is stored at 4\u00b0C (40\u00b0F) or lower. If the food is not used within three days it should be discarded. Remember that Day 1 is the day the product was made. So if a product was made on October 15, the use-by date would be October 18.<br>&nbsp;<br>Keep in mind that you should always consult your community\u2019s policies for specific information about food storage, safety and use, including day in and out recommendations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We demystify best-before and expiration dates to help you understand when food is at its best. It\u2019s important to understand what information the specific type of date code tells you about a food or drink. A common misconception is that a date code indicates a product\u2019s safety. In most cases, this is not true. Date [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":4697,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[122,123,112,69,111,113],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-catering-small-business","category-hotels-hospitality","category-restaurant-bars","category-running-your-business","category-healthcare","category-university"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.9 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How should date codes be interpreted? | Gordon Food Service<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Master interpreting food date codes for accurate food safety compliance and inventory management to significantly reduce costly waste in your operation.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/how-should-date-codes-be-interpreted\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How should date codes be interpreted?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Master interpreting food date codes for accurate food safety compliance and inventory management to significantly reduce costly waste in your operation.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/how-should-date-codes-be-interpreted\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gordon Food Service\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/GordonFoodService\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-12-29T19:12:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-21T19:07:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Egg-IC_Header_695x375.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"760\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Cody Rivers\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@cody.rivers@gfs.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@GFSDelivers\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Cody Rivers\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How should date codes be interpreted? | Gordon Food Service","description":"Master interpreting food date codes for accurate food safety compliance and inventory management to significantly reduce costly waste in your operation.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/how-should-date-codes-be-interpreted\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How should date codes be interpreted?","og_description":"Master interpreting food date codes for accurate food safety compliance and inventory management to significantly reduce costly waste in your operation.","og_url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/how-should-date-codes-be-interpreted\/","og_site_name":"Gordon Food Service","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/GordonFoodService\/","article_published_time":"2017-12-29T19:12:35+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-11-21T19:07:50+00:00","og_image":[{"width":760,"height":400,"url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Egg-IC_Header_695x375.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Cody Rivers","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@cody.rivers@gfs.com","twitter_site":"@GFSDelivers","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Cody Rivers","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/comment-sy-retrouver-parmi-les-codes-de-dates\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/comment-sy-retrouver-parmi-les-codes-de-dates\/"},"author":{"name":"Cody Rivers","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#\/schema\/person\/ac2dd585b10d08ce15daca230d897374"},"headline":"How should date codes be interpreted?","datePublished":"2017-12-29T19:12:35+00:00","dateModified":"2025-11-21T19:07:50+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/comment-sy-retrouver-parmi-les-codes-de-dates\/"},"wordCount":620,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/comment-sy-retrouver-parmi-les-codes-de-dates\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Egg-IC_Header_695x375.jpg","articleSection":["Catering &amp; Small Business","Hotels &amp; Hospitality","Restaurant &amp; Bars","Running Your Business","Senior Living &amp; Healthcare","University"],"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":["WebPage","CollectionPage"],"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/comment-sy-retrouver-parmi-les-codes-de-dates\/","url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/comment-sy-retrouver-parmi-les-codes-de-dates\/","name":"How should date codes be interpreted? 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