Are expiration dates just a gimmick for you to buy more?

xc62701

xc62701

Well-Known Member
I have some old recovery drink that was expensive so I don't want to throw it away. It's 3 years past expiration and sealed powdered mix. It may be slightly less potent but should still be beneficial. Thoughts? Am I wrong? Yes I'm a cheap bastard.
 
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i think 3 years may be pushing things... but it being powder might be to your advantage.

true story: my grandfather once gave my mom some hi-c fruit drinks for us kids... my mom opened it and started to pour it out for us. it literally changed from bright pink to brown mid-pour. it was a "little" past its expiration date... needless to say my mom checked everything from then on... and suggested some new eye glasses for her FIL.
 
On Saturday I walked into my house and my wife had a full Hefty garbage bag filled with boxes and jars. I asked what it was. She said she was looking for something in the pantry and it was expired. She then proceeded to check every expiration date of items in the pantry. Hence the garbage bag full of food.
 
Expiration dates are usually there for legal purposes because everyone sues everyone in the US. It's also a guaranteed best taste by kind of thing. Use your best judgement on what it is though, of course. Expired powder should be ok. I've had year+ old Gu's, etc. before without issue, same with powdered drink mixes. Pretty sure my ketchup is like 6 months out and I haven't died. Yogurts a week out are typically fine. Eggs and milk in Europe sits on shelves, not refrigerators. 'Murica is soft. Drink your old powder.

EU almost caused some issues in Poland when they tried banning things like pickles or oscypki because they're just old cucumbers, and oscypki (cheese) use of unpasteurized milk, etc. These things don't have stamped expiration dates. But again, a judgement thing. Fresh bread in Europe is amazing, and only really good for a day. High fructose corn syrup and many preservatives are restricted.
 
So expiration dates are basically saying . Hey I guarantee this product until xxxxx date to have its maximum freshness or whatever it’s protecting. It protects the company for various reasons you may think are just dumb. Having experience with expired ingredients here at work, we ask for An extension and try to use up before extended date. That being said, 3 years past the printed date potentially could of been extended before printed date. There could be a chance that it’s just one ingredient in the container. So just keep that in mind.
 
Magic said:
Expiration dates are usually there for legal purposes because everyone sues everyone in the US. It's also a guaranteed best taste by kind of thing. Use your best judgement on what it is though, of course. Expired powder should be ok. I've had year+ old Gu's, etc. before without issue, same with powdered drink mixes. Pretty sure my ketchup is like 6 months out and I haven't died. Yogurts a week out are typically fine. Eggs and milk in Europe sits on shelves, not refrigerators. 'Murica is soft. Drink your old powder.

EU almost caused some issues in Poland when they tried banning things like pickles or oscypki because they're just old cucumbers, and oscypki (cheese) use of unpasteurized milk, etc. These things don't have stamped expiration dates. But again, a judgement thing. Fresh bread in Europe is amazing, and only really good for a day. High fructose corn syrup and many preservatives are restricted.
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Any advice given on expiration dates from a Warsaw Pact country should be discounted completely.

Milk for coffee at work: Dates are ignored. If it curdles when you pour it in coffee it gets tossed. Otherwise, drink up!
 
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Guidelines from volunteer day at the Hillside food pantry on how far past the date is still donateable.
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I've pushed Gu packets to a year past expiration date. Still alive, just takes a little longer to understand things now.
 
xc62701 said:
I have some old recovery drink that was expensive so I don't want to throw it away. It's 3 years past expiration and sealed powdered mix. It may be slightly less potent but should still be beneficial. Thoughts? Am I wrong? Yes I'm a cheap bastard.
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The rules for vitamins and supplements aren't nearly as strict as drugs in most ways, however for vitamins your potency is required to be at 100% or more of label claims. The manufacturers usually run stability studies to test this, and expiry is usually based on how long you can age this stuff and still be at 100% potency.
 
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