Friday, May 27, 2016

Good morning,

A recent study done by Harvard Law School's Food Law and Policy Clinic and the Natural Resources Defense Council exposes the truth behind expiration dates.

Thanks for reading,

Your Living Green editor

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"The dates are undefined in law and have nothing to do with safety," said Emily Broad Leib, lead author of the study. "Manufacturers are picking dates that are really protective over their brand, which is fine, it's just important for consumers to know that."

The study looked at rates of waste, finding that 90 percent of consumers throw they food away on the sell by date. Leib said consumers are unaware that these dates are not necessarily linked with food safety. As a result, about 160 billion tons of food are wasted every year.

"Consumers need to take that extra minute to actually look at their food and smell their food and make an assessment," Leib said. "When we just rely on these dates and throw everything away after the date, were leading to really high rates of food waste."