Canadians91裸聊视频� misunderstanding of best before dates could be contributing to excess food waste and, in turn, food insecurity, experts say as a government committee urges Ottawa to examine the issue.

A report on grocery affordability from a House of Commons committee on agriculture and agri-food includes arguments that Canada do away with best before dates due to the widespread misconception that they indicate whether a product is safe to consume.

Experts say all they indicate is when a product is past its peak freshness.

91裸聊视频淭here91裸聊视频檚 a lot of confusion around what food labels mean,91裸聊视频� Kate Parizeau, a professor at the University of Guelph who studies food waste, said Tuesday.

91裸聊视频淎 lot of people think that best before dates are expiry dates, when there are actually very few products in Canada that have a proper expiry date.91裸聊视频�

Generally, the only foods with an expiry date are those that have a specific nutritional requirement that could degrade over time, such as baby formula. Best before dates, on the other hand, are required on foods that are expected to go bad within 90 days.

Food manufacturers and processors tend to slap them on all sorts of products, though, Parizeau noted, and they are of limited utility.

91裸聊视频淚 think many people have this idea that before dates are determined by scientists in a lab measuring how many days until a product goes bad,91裸聊视频� she said.

91裸聊视频淭hat91裸聊视频檚 not how it works. It91裸聊视频檚 something that the government tells manufacturers that they themselves have to figure out in-house, so it91裸聊视频檚 a bit of a black box.91裸聊视频�

Parizeau encouraged consumers to learn more about food safety so they can determine for themselves whether groceries are spoiled.

91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檙e so disconnected from our food sources. We don91裸聊视频檛 know when the product was picked. We don91裸聊视频檛 know how long it91裸聊视频檚 supposed to stay good,91裸聊视频� she said.

91裸聊视频淪o if somebody puts peppers into cellophane and puts a sticker on them, we91裸聊视频檙e like, 91裸聊视频極K, this is meaningful. I can trust whatever is put on the sticker.91裸聊视频� In part, because we don91裸聊视频檛 understand how that decision came about either.91裸聊视频�

Lori Nikkel, the CEO of Second Harvest Canada, is quoted in the government report saying that best before dates encourage people to throw out 91裸聊视频減erfectly good food91裸聊视频� when many go hungry because of rising costs.

91裸聊视频淓liminating best-before dates would prevent safe, consumable food from being thrown out and save Canadians money on their grocery bills,91裸聊视频� she said in the report released last month, which recommends the government investigate 91裸聊视频渉ow the elimination of 91裸聊视频榖est-before91裸聊视频� dates on foods would impact Canadians.91裸聊视频�

Michael von Massow, an expert in food labeling who also teaches at the University of Guelph, said he91裸聊视频檚 in favour of doing away with the labels.

91裸聊视频淏ecause they are so misinterpreted, I think there91裸聊视频檚 some real value in getting rid of them,91裸聊视频� he said.

Von Massow said the extent to which food waste drives up cost is not clear, though it stands to reason that it plays some role by reducing the supply and increasing demand for groceries.

91裸聊视频淚f we were throwing out less stuff, we would save money in our households, even if prices didn91裸聊视频檛 change,91裸聊视频� von Massow said.

91裸聊视频淪o I think there91裸聊视频檚 an argument that prices could change if we threw less of some products out. But even if it didn91裸聊视频檛 change, if we threw less stuff out, our grocery budget would go down.91裸聊视频�

The suggestion that the government study the potential effects of removing best before dates is one of 13 in the report.

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