Let's Play "The Expired Products Game"! First, Go To Your Pantry or Bathroom, And Then...

[seoulsearch]

Hey Everyone,

I thought of this last week when I was taking inventory of my canned goods -- and found a can of great northern beans dated June of 2024 -- so roughly 8 months old.

I'm still planning on using it -- just as soon as I clear up enough freezer space for a big batch of bean and ham soup.

I also have a bottle of sunscreen that expired in September of 2024 -- but I've done a patch test on my arm with no issues, so... I'm still using it up on my tougher skin that is less prone to irritation or breakouts.

I understand that some people might holler about this, but I hate throwing away money (though of course I will if it's a matter of health.) The beans are in a sealed canned -- unless the can starts to swell or there were adverse signs when I open it, I see don't see it as a problem. And since I'm not having any problems with the sunscreen on my arms and shoulders, I can't see throwing it out when I'll have it used up in another two weeks anyway.

I do try to be careful about expiration dates when I buy things -- but being single, I think many of us often have a hard time estimating how much we're going to use up, and in what time frames. Do you ever find this challenging as well? If we're by ourselves, it's not like the item can be used up amongst several people.

So... I was thinking, let's make a game out of this! ALL are welcome to answer -- single, married, with families or not! I was just thinking of this in particular as a single because it's often hard for me to use things up "in time."

If you'd like to "play", simply:

1. Go to your pantry, bathroom, or anywhere you have products with expiration dates.

2. Tell us which product you have has the oldest date, if you'll still use it, and why or why not.

3. If you don't have time or want to check your current products, tell us how you feel/have dealt with expiration dates as a whole.

* Do you follow expiration dates very strictly? Why or why not?

* Does it depend on what the item is, or why?

I myself have a love-hate relationship with expiration dates. I don't mind if it's something like canned beans, which, in my opinion, would be An Official Food of The Apocalypse (and dried beans, even more so.)

But I always keep a "First-Aid Kit" at home -- antibiotic ointment, cortisone cream, ibuprofen, etc. And even though I dig through the displays to find the products with the longest expiration dates, I'm never able to use them up in time, even when they're dated a year or more out. And of course, medicines are something I'm much stricter about.

I hate the constant cycle of having to throw away barely-touched tubes and then replacing them, but I guess it also makes me very thankful that I don't have to use these things very often.

How about you?

I am very interested in hearing if others have/use expired products (tell me I'm not the only one!), and what their philosophies are when it comes to using and/or replacing them.

 

[Tall_Timbers]

Most expiration dates are just to help protect the company that's selling the item. I've safely served and consumed things that were several years beyond their expiration date. Certain things bear closer observation when past the expiration date. Canned tomato based products, for example. I've used spaghetti sauce that was several years past the expiration date, but always carefully examined the can as well as the contents. One time I was opening a can and noticed an unusual pressure release at the first turn of the can opener. That sauce got 86'd. During the time we lived in Alaska we had 4 kids and multiple good sized pantries. I'd tend to buy stuff on sale in quantities and put the stuff away in the pantry. We also had 30 sq Ft of additional freezer space. If I re-wrapped meat, red meats would stay pretty good for up to 3 years if well wrapped and fish could go as long as 2 years. Plastic shrink wrap would tend to develop small holes over time from people rooting through the freezers looking for stuff so my preferred wrapping method was a wrap of commercial plastic followed by a tight wrap in butcher paper.

In our current home we don't have a whole lot of food storage space so I reckon things won't get as old... but a lot of it will still exceed the expiration date by the time it gets used.

 

[seoulsearch]

Most expiration dates are just to help protect the company that's selling the item. I've safely served and consumed things that were several years beyond their expiration date. Certain things bear closer observation when past the expiration date. Canned tomato based products, for example. I've used spaghetti sauce that was several years past the expiration date, but always carefully examined the can as well as the contents. One time I was opening a can and noticed an unusual pressure release at the first turn of the can opener. That sauce got 86'd. During the time we lived in Alaska we had 4 kids and multiple good sized pantries. I'd tend to buy stuff on sale in quantities and put the stuff away in the pantry. We also had 30 sq Ft of additional freezer space. If I re-wrapped meat, red meats would stay pretty good for up to 3 years if well wrapped and fish could go as long as 2 years. Plastic shrink wrap would tend to develop small holes over time from people rooting through the freezers looking for stuff so my preferred wrapping method was a wrap of commercial plastic followed by a tight wrap in butcher paper.

In our current home we don't have a whole lot of food storage space so I reckon things won't get as old... but a lot of it will still exceed the expiration date by the time it gets used.

Awesome advice -- thanks very much @Tall_Timbers!

I find the info about the frozen meat to be especially helpful. That's another thing -- as a single person, it's getting harder and harder to find a store where you can just buy a pound of ground hamburger (at least, out here.)

No, I can't just by a nice 1 lb. package of meat -- rather, they have everything bundled up in 2.5 pound packages or more -- beh. I don't eat that much meat as it is. And some of the times I've tried to wrap and store it, it just got horribly freezer burned, so...

I'm going to put in some research on the best ways to rewrap foods in order to prevent this.

Thanks again for the tips!

 

[seoulsearch]

To All the Ladies --

How often do you replace your mascara?

I know they say to replace it every 3 months, which I can't argue because trying to save money on a cosmetic product isn't worth causing problems with one's eyes. But man, that must get awfully expensive, since it seems like even "drugstore" mascara is often $15+ a tube.

Do you abide by this "rule"?

I skip out on it by not wearing mascara -- I do like the look of it but my eyes are way too sensitive for me to wear it very often, so I kind of luck out by default.

Is there anything that The Gentlemen are told to replace often?

And do you or don't you pay attention to these guidelines?

 

[Tall_Timbers]

No, I can't just by a nice 1 lb. package of meat -- rather, they have everything bundled up in 2.5 pound packages or more -- beh. I don't eat that much meat as it is. And some of the times I've tried to wrap and store it, it just got horribly freezer burned, so...

Most people prefer the shrink wrap. I re-wrap all meat products before storing them in the freezer if we're not going to eat it right away. I prefer the plastic/butcher paper approach but you do have to wrap it very tightly so there's little or no air in the package. Any air will lead to the dreaded freezer burn, which will occur with the shrink wrapped product if/when a small hole develops.

While it doesn't matter with hamburger, if you re-wrap and freeze a nice steak that was already frozen once and thawed, while it'll be edible the quality will have taken a dive, so I always try to eat steaks right away.

If you're going to shrink wrap meats, wrap them in plastic first and freeze them and as soon as they're frozen run them through the shrink wrapper... They'll shrink wrap better that way.

 

[Lynx]

Most expiration dates are just to help protect the company that's selling the item. I've safely served and consumed things that were several years beyond their expiration date. Certain things bear closer observation when past the expiration date. Canned tomato based products, for example. I've used spaghetti sauce that was several years past the expiration date, but always carefully examined the can as well as the contents. One time I was opening a can and noticed an unusual pressure release at the first turn of the can opener. That sauce got 86'd. During the time we lived in Alaska we had 4 kids and multiple good sized pantries. I'd tend to buy stuff on sale in quantities and put the stuff away in the pantry. We also had 30 sq Ft of additional freezer space. If I re-wrapped meat, red meats would stay pretty good for up to 3 years if well wrapped and fish could go as long as 2 years. Plastic shrink wrap would tend to develop small holes over time from people rooting through the freezers looking for stuff so my preferred wrapping method was a wrap of commercial plastic followed by a tight wrap in butcher paper.

In our current home we don't have a whole lot of food storage space so I reckon things won't get as old... but a lot of it will still exceed the expiration date by the time it gets used.

Yeah. Basically everything he said.

 

[Lynx]

I have noticed people in Great Britain seem to have been raised to be much more vigilant about expiration dates.

A clip from a recent Sarah Millican stand-up comedy bit:

She related how her boyfriend got her a holiday cookie for her birthday. Here we call them pizza cookies or family size cookies, basically a cookie the size of a large pizza. He said there is one downside... She was looking at this cookie bigger than her head, thinking how can there be a downside? He said the expiration date was in 5 days.

"Ha! You don't know me very well, pet."

"You didn't let me finish. It expires in 5 days, and I bought it four days ago."

"Well that's not a downside. That's a challenge! Quick, love, put the kettle on!"

 

[Lynx]

I tried to post the clip, but it had too much profanity. Google Sarah millican cookie and you will easily find a clip from where she did the same jokes in another stand-up set, with slightly different phrasing.

She also told about how she was going to visit her boyfriend for a couple of days and he asked her what she wanted him to pick up from the store for her visit. She gave him a list and he went shopping. When she got there he said he was only short one thing, avocados... "So I got you some pork pies instead."

"Well... I wish YOU worked for Tesco home delivery. I'm sorry, we were out of celery so here's a Swiss roll"

"Better yet, they are whoops pork pies. They're about to go out of date, so we have to eat all six before we go to bed tonight."

"Yes! This is why I love this guy."

 

[Kireina]

My husband is the expiration date police and I am quite the opposite. A one day over is not a big deal for me...

So no...no expired products in the house because my husband is the expiration date watchman 😂 and we argue about this all the time when he is throwing food and he does it when I am not looking lol 😅

I am not meticulous lol as long as it is not spoiled (smelling bad or moldy ) but haven't eaten one yet so far lol except when I was a kid. My mother brought home moldy pizzas(pizze). After removing the molds the pizzas were heated then ready to eat lol they tasted good honestly 😀

 

[cinder]

Known perishable foods (milk cheese eggs etc) I try to be a bit cautious about the expiration date because that stuff goes bad and you have to use it or lose it. Other stuff, well I remember being amused when I was overseas and paper goods like napkins had expiration dates, but in general I take rhem as an advisement that the product might not be as effective as it originally was, and keep using it until it is used up. There's some cough medicine in the bathroom with expiration dates in 2020 and 2021 as proof of this. Don't have a lot of food storage space so I try to get what I need and use what I get pretty quick (though there's some 10 year old bay leaves in the cupboard).

 

[Lynx]

If you take the bay leaves out during a full moon and they do not bay at the moon, they are still okay.

 

[Karlon]

i'm very strict about expiration dates, especially perishable items like milk, bread, lunchmeat, eggs, etc. i finish those type items before the expiration date always. we never have left over food for a long time. if it's about 3 or 4 days old & we don't want it, we give it to our farm animals which are cats, dogs, goats, horses, rabbits & lambs. sometimes we have food close to the e. date & we'll donate it to someone or an organization.

 

[MsMediator]

I am rarely in the position where I have expired food. My emergency stock would last a few weeks but I use the old cans first, etc.

I use up my skin care items also. However, I do replace my makeup if I have not used them in awhile. Especially as I try to keep a good skin care routine, I do not like to use old make up.

I do not use expired OTC or prescription meds either. Most already have a long shelf life like one year so that is long enough.

 

[tourist]

If you take the bay leaves out during a full moon and they do not bay at the moon, they are still okay.

Good nutritional advice for sure.

 

[Tall_Timbers]

Known perishable foods (milk cheese eggs etc)

If an egg sinks in water, it is still good, if it floats, it's gone bad.

Eggs have a pretty long shelf life. Washing them and refrigerating them shortens the time in which they'll still be good.

 

[ForgiveMeGod]

We just bought this recently but the product, TANG, should have been expired in 1957.

 

[ForgiveMeGod]

I also am very strict about perishable items and always throw them out, day of expiration, usually.

 

[enril]

Hey Everyone,

I thought of this last week when I was taking inventory of my canned goods -- and found a can of great northern beans dated June of 2024 -- so roughly 8 months old.

I'm still planning on using it -- just as soon as I clear up enough freezer space for a big batch of bean and ham soup.

I also have a bottle of sunscreen that expired in September of 2024 -- but I've done a patch test on my arm with no issues, so... I'm still using it up on my tougher skin that is less prone to irritation or breakouts.

I understand that some people might holler about this, but I hate throwing away money (though of course I will if it's a matter of health.) The beans are in a sealed canned -- unless the can starts to swell or there were adverse signs when I open it, I see don't see it as a problem. And since I'm not having any problems with the sunscreen on my arms and shoulders, I can't see throwing it out when I'll have it used up in another two weeks anyway.

I do try to be careful about expiration dates when I buy things -- but being single, I think many of us often have a hard time estimating how much we're going to use up, and in what time frames. Do you ever find this challenging as well? If we're by ourselves, it's not like the item can be used up amongst several people.

So... I was thinking, let's make a game out of this! ALL are welcome to answer -- single, married, with families or not! I was just thinking of this in particular as a single because it's often hard for me to use things up "in time."

If you'd like to "play", simply:

1. Go to your pantry, bathroom, or anywhere you have products with expiration dates.

2. Tell us which product you have has the oldest date, if you'll still use it, and why or why not.

3. If you don't have time or want to check your current products, tell us how you feel/have dealt with expiration dates as a whole.

* Do you follow expiration dates very strictly? Why or why not?

* Does it depend on what the item is, or why?

I myself have a love-hate relationship with expiration dates. I don't mind if it's something like canned beans, which, in my opinion, would be An Official Food of The Apocalypse (and dried beans, even more so.)

But I always keep a "First-Aid Kit" at home -- antibiotic ointment, cortisone cream, ibuprofen, etc. And even though I dig through the displays to find the products with the longest expiration dates, I'm never able to use them up in time, even when they're dated a year or more out. And of course, medicines are something I'm much stricter about.

I hate the constant cycle of having to throw away barely-touched tubes and then replacing them, but I guess it also makes me very thankful that I don't have to use these things very often.

How about you?

I am very interested in hearing if others have/use expired products (tell me I'm not the only one!), and what their philosophies are when it comes to using and/or replacing them.

Jan. 26, 2015.... what? they were cheap. and rarely used. anchovies. the amount of salt in those, a case, only being used for ceasar dressing, will last 3 years easy. and when cases are 3 bucks each.... What?! so?

 

[Lynx]

Anchovies would not be a good deal if THEY paid ME to take them.

 

[enril]

true... but I'm not my dad... sooo...