What Do Packaging Dates and Codes Mean?

Detailed lists from various sources with notes, ideas and hints on all aspects of starting, organizing and using your food storage. Including Buckets, mylar bags, oxy absorbers, shelf life, packaging codes, storage solutions & MORE!
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Readymom
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What Do Packaging Dates and Codes Mean?

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What do packaging dates mean?
https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/food-nutrition/food-storage-guide-answers-the-question/fn579.pdf

(Page 15)

"Sell by" means the store should sell the product by the printed date, but the product still can be safely eaten by the consumer.

"Best if used by" means the consumer should use the product by the date listed for best quality and flavor (not for safety reasons).

"Use by" or "expires" means the product should be used by consumers by the date listed; you are likely to see a marked deterioration in product quality and safety after that date.
Last edited by Readymom on Wed Mar 06, 2019 5:22 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Canned Good Shelf Life And Stamped Code Decoder

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Canned Good Shelf Life And Stamped Code Decoder

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NOTE: this is a great chart that helps you decode those numbers on your product packages, when there is NOT a date code stamped for easy reference! A BIG help!

by Gail Fialkow

The following grid will help you decipher those confusing codes on the tops and sides of canned, boxed, bottled goods. Hint: set your page setup to print landscape.

Go to: http://www.y2kkitchen.com/html/can_code_decoder.html for one of the most helpful tools to decipher those codes you find on items!
Last edited by Readymom on Wed May 13, 2009 5:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Green Giant Can Dates

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:!: NOTE: This is an archived post from the American Preppers Network. The original post is no longer available. (Dead Link Removed)

Original Post by: red wolf, Plan for Pandemic

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I asked for info from cans bought at sams here is what I got.

Dear Consumer:

Thank you for taking the time to contact Green Giant regarding product codes.

Manufacturing codes are used internally as a way of tracking production. Our manufacturing codes are composed of a series of letters and numbers, usually on the top or bottom of the packaging. The letter, from A-L stands for the MONTH the product was produced. "A" stands for January, "B" stands for February, and so on through "L" for December. The second symbol is always a number. It is the last digit of the Year the product was packaged. For example, B0P25 would indicate that the product was manufactured on February 25, 2000.


For best quality we recommend using our Green Giant canned vegetable products within 2 years of the manufacture date, with the exception of:

Peas = 3 years

Mushrooms = 4 years

For best quality we recommend using our Green Giant frozen vegetable products within one year of the manufacture date, with the exception of Corn-on-the-Cob, which is 20 months.

We appreciate your interest.

Sincerely,
Thomas H. Batty
General Mills
Consumer Services
Last edited by Readymom on Wed May 13, 2009 5:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reese
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HANOVER FOODS CANNED/JARRED CODES

Post by Reese »

I buy alot of the Hanover canned kidney beans & great northern beans. This company has not switched over to the "Best when used by Date". Instead it is a complicated code.....at least in my eyes. Today I was doing an inventory and realized I didn't know when my Hanover canned goods would expire. I sent off an email to the company and got the following reply. Thought I'd better share so others can benefit.

HANOVER FOODS CANNED/JARRED CODES

Example: 37035 HLK6 12:30

First Digit 3 ignore (tells us what shift the product was done on).

Second Digit 7 is for the year: (2007).

Third, Fourth & Fifth Digit 035 is the day of the Year according to the Julian Calendar (February 4th).

HLK6 stands for the contents (Hanover Light Red Kidneys).

12:30 is for the production time (in Military time).


This particular can was produced on February 4, 2007 and we guarantee our canned products for two (2) years,
so it will expire February 4, 2009.
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Post by Readymom »

Continental Mills - Krusteaz - How to Read the code

How to Read Our Date Code
https://www.krusteaz.com/how-read-our-date-code

Product Shelf Life

Continental Mills retail "Best By" date codes are based on date of manufacture. For the best quality, we suggest that all products be used within the recommended guidelines listed below. Under proper storage conditions (cool, dry location out of direct sunlight), our products will meet acceptable quality expectations as follows: ---CONTINUED---
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Re: What Do Packaging Dates and Codes Mean?

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:!: NOTE: The original post is no longer available. Dead link has been removed.

Armour Star Products-Date Codes

* How do you read the date code on the can?

The code is generally stamped on the top or bottom of the can. The code is as follows: PPYMDDXXXX

* The first and second characters "PP" is the Production Facility
* The third character "Y" is the last number of the year
* The fourth character "M" is the Month in the letter designation.

(A=January, B=February, C=March, D=April, E=May, F=June, G=July, H=August, K=September, L=October, M=November, N=December)

* The fifth and sixth characters "DD" are the day of the month
* The final four characters "XXXX" is the time of production in Military form.

For example: PP6A0610:30
Reads: Product Plant, 2006, January, the 6th day of the month, at 10:30 a.m.

Original Coding: The production codes are spray-jetted on the bottom of the container. The first letter represents the month of production. "A" stands for January, "B" stands for February and so on. The next two numbers represent the day of the month the product was processed. The third number indicates the year. If the production code reads D056C23, it was produced April 5, 2006. This does not apply to roast or corned beef.

Some products that are manufactured out of the country may have another code. Please call CONSUMER INFORMATION CENTER 1-800-528-0849 for assistance Monday through Friday form 6:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time. Please Note: All our canned meats go through a sterilization process during canning, which make them shelf-stable. According to our food technologies, the shelf life of the meat products is at least two years. After this, some small chemical changes may occur within the product that DO NOT affect the safety but may affect the flavor of the product.

* How long do your products last after being opened?

Transfer any leftovers to an airtight container and refrigerate. Product should be consumed within a few days.

* How long do your canned products last?

Canned products are safe to use indefinitely as long as the seal is intact and can is not bulged. However, we recommend using product within three years of the manufacturing date. This will ensure the best flavor of the product. Although the products are good indefinitely the flavor gradually deteriorates over time.
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Re: What Do Packaging Dates and Codes Mean?

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I wrote to Chicken of the Sea to ask about the length of time BEYOND the expiration date their products can be used for POUCH products.

This is their Email reply:

Our pouch product has a 3 year shelf life for the best flavor. We are happy to announce that the “best by" date has been placed on all of our Chicken of the Sea products since 2007.

This is the link to their website for CANNED products:

How long is canned tuna edible?
http://chickenofthesea.com/faq_5.aspx

Commercially canned and pouched food may be safely stored for several years as long as the container is not bulged, damaged or leaking in any manner. A concern with prolonged periods of storage is that the product begins to lose some if its palatability. We recommend that stocks of canned or pouched goods be rotated in your normal food supply so that none is stored much longer than a year prior to consumption.
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Re: Shelf Life of Foods

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Canned Foods-Dates on Cans and How to Read Codes

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What Do the Dates on Your Canned Foods Mean?
http://www.families.com/blog/what-do-the-dates-on-your-canned-foods-mean

Are you unsure about how long a can of tuna will last? What do the stamps printed on the cans mean? Can the stamped dates tell you how long an item will store? Those codes sure can be confusing! Here are some things to keep in mind when storing canned foods:

First, you may be able to get some information from the product codes printed on the cans, but not much. Cans that list a “use by” date or a “best if eaten by” mean more than random numbers or dates without labels. Other codes or dates printed on cans are not even for customers, they are only labels for the food producers themselves. Here are some common dates printed on cans and other packaged foods and what they mean: --- CONTINUED at LINK, above ---

= = = = = = = = = = =

How to read the codes on your canned foods.
http://www.families.com/blog/how-to-read-the-codes-on-your-canned-foods

(SNIP) .... you might be asking about now, is a can code? Well, it’s a packing code used by the manufacturer for tracking purposes. That way they can more easily ensure their stock gets rotated, and if there’s a recall it’s possible to know exactly what cans are involved.

The thing is, these codes aren’t meant to be used by the consumer. If you grab a can of corn out of your cupboard you’ll quickly see the code on the top or bottom. It might be printed on the lid, or stamped into the metal so that you’ll feel it more easily than see it. You’ll notice it doesn’t make much sense. To the manufacturer, however, it contains a lot of important information, everything from the date of manufacture to where it was made. --- --- CONTINUED at LINK, above ---
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Dates on Food Storage-Julian Dates

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What is a Julian Date?
https://blog.foodinsurance.com/what-is-a-julian-date/

(SNIP) ... you have to be on top of the manufacture dates, which can be fairly confusing if you don’t know the Julian dating system. Never fear, we’ve got you covered.

What is a Julian date? Julian dating is actually one of the oldest ways of keeping a calendar, dating centuries before we started our calendar system. While we’ve adopted a relatively young Gregorian calendar using years, months, and days, Julian dating uses only numbers. ---CONTINUED---

Perpetual Julian Calendar can be found here: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/ahfss/mpes/pdfs/Julian_Calendar.pdf
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Re: Shelf Life of Foods

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Everything You Need to Know About Those “Expiration Dates” on Your Food
https://www.theorganicprepper.com/expiration-dates-food/

Have you ever wondered what the real expiration dates are for your pantry food? Have you ever wondered whether your food was safe to eat past the “expiration date?”

Fear not. There is no more need to throw away perfectly good food over a little date stamp.

The problem is – people are throwing canned or packaged goods away on a false perception that the date means expiration. In other words, they fear that the product could be spoiled or unsafe. ---CONTINUED---
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Re: Shelf Life of Foods

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How To Read Food Expiration Dates
https://urbansurvivalsite.com/food-shelf-life-tips/

I want to to share some information on what affects food shelf life and how to take the expiration date on the package into account. Keep in mind that this article is mainly about food you can store in your pantry. You should be more cautious with refrigerated foods. ---CONTINUED---
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Re: What Do Packaging Dates and Codes Mean?

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From the USDA:

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Food Product Dating
https://www.fsis.usda.gov/shared/PDF/Food_Product_Dating.pdf?redirecthttp=true

“Sell by Feb 14” is a type of information you might find on a meat or poultry product. Are dates required on food products? Does it mean the product will be unsafe to use after that date? Here is some background information which answers these and other questions about product dating. ---CONTINUED---
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Re: What Do Packaging Dates and Codes Mean?

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FoodReference.com

Canned Food, Shelf Life
http://www.foodreference.com/html/tcannedfoodshelflife.html

One of the most frequently asked questions about canned food is its shelf life and "use-by" dates. The codes that are stamped on canned food are manufacturers' codes that usually designate the date the product was packaged. The codes vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and usually include coding for time and place of canning. Most manufacturers offer a toll-free number to call for questions about canned food expiration dates. For a sampling of how to read product codes, See Below. ---CONTINUED---
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Re: What Do Packaging Dates and Codes Mean?

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Washington State University

Decoding Food Dates
https://extension.wsu.edu/foodsafety/content/decoding-food-dates/

Do the dates on food packages puzzle you? What about those letters and numbers? If you are confused or puzzled– you are not alone.

(SNIP) ... Here are some generally accepted definitions for food dates that may help you determine how long you want to store foods once you get them home. ---CONTINUED---
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