Washington—Bipartisan legislation reintroduced in both the House and Senate this week would establish what its sponsors call an easily understood food date labeling system.

The Food Date Labeling Act was introduced in the House by US Reps. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) and Dan Newhouse (R-WA) and in the Senate by US Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). The three lawmakers had previously introduced the Food Date Labeling Act in mid-2019.

Currently, there are no federal regulations related to date labels on food products, aside from infant formula, the bill’s sponsors noted. Date labeling regulations are left up to the states, which means consumers have to sort through a patchwork of terms, including “Sell by,” “use by,” “freshest on,” and “expires on,” among others.

Under the Food Date Labeling Act, “BEST If Used By” would communicate to consumers that the quality of food product may begin to deterorate after the date, and “USE By” would communicate the end of the estimated shelf life, after which the product should not be consumed.

Under the legislation, food manufacturers would decide which food products carry a quality date or a discard date. The bill would also allow food to be sold or donated after its labeled quality date.

“It’s estimated that around 90 percent of Americans prematurely throw out perfectly safe food, in part because of confusion about what date labels mean,” said Pingree, cochair, along with Newhouse, of the Bipartisan Food Recovery Caucus. “Our current food labeling practices are outdated, confusing, and completely arbitrary.

“The Food Date Labeling Act gives us an opportunity at the federal level to ensure food is being used and eaten, rather than being thrown out,” Pingree continued.

“To allow confusing food labeling practices to contribute to unnecessary food waste is absurd, especially when there are tens of millions of Americans experiencing food insecurity. This is a commonsense solution to a pervasive problem,” Newhouse said.

“This bill will help prevent perfectly safe food from going to waste simply because of confusing labeling. Nearly half of our country’s food gets thrown out each year while millions of Americans go hungry and the climate crisis worsens,” Blumenthal commented. “The Food Date Labeling Act would create a uniform food date label that gives consumers a clear understanding of when food is still safe to eat, helping keep good food out of landfills and on Americans’ plates.”

“As food manufacturers, we believe this bill is an important and simple step to address food waste and eliminate consumer confusion in America,” said Herrish Patel, executive vice president, foods and refreshment, Unilever North America.

“Clarifying and standardizing date label language is one of the most cost-effective and commensense methods to reduce the 40 percent of food that goes to waste each year in the United States,” said Emily Broad Leib, Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic.

“Action at the federal level will help ensure that businesses and consumers alike can use and understand date labels more effectively, standardizing these labels across food products and around the country in order to reduce food that ends up in landfill and encourage more donation of safe surplus food,” she added.

“Date label confusion is a leading cause of food waste in the US. The Food Date Labeling Act would standardize date labels, build consumer awareness around them, and make donating safe food easier,” said Yvette Cabrera, director of food waste, Natural Resources Defense Council.

“This low-cost solution would keep money in people’s pockets and food on people’s plates instead of in landfills, where it produces greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change,” Cabrera continued.

“When we waste food, we waste the land, water, and energy used to produce it. We also generate significant methane emissions as this food decomposes in landfills,” said Pete Pearson, senior director, food waste, World Wildlife Fund.

“In this context, preventing food waste represents a critical act of conservation. The Food Date Labeling Act along with nationwide consumer education will help ensure more food reaches people who need it, heighten awareness on food waste, and help us all navigate confusing expiration dates so that we can all waste less and save more,” Pearson continued. “This is a win-win for consumers and the environment.”