A bipartisan proposal in the U.S. Senate could bring sweeping changes to food packaging across the country by creating a standardized system for expiration and quality dates, a move supporters say would reduce consumer confusion and cut down on billions of pounds of wasted food each year.
The Food Date Labeling Act of 2025, introduced by U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Rick Scott, R-Fla., would establish uniform federal standards for date labels that manufacturers voluntarily place on food products. The legislation is currently before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.
One national standard for food date labels
The legislation seeks to address a longstanding problem in grocery stores: the wide variety of date labels currently used on food packaging.
Today, consumers encounter phrases such as “best by,” “best if used by,” “sell by,” “expires on,” “use by,” and other variations. While many shoppers assume those dates indicate food safety risks, many are actually intended to reflect product quality rather than whether the food is safe to consume.
Under the bill, manufacturers that choose to include a quality-related date would be required to use the phrase “BEST If Used By.” That label would indicate the date after which a product’s quality may begin to decline, while still remaining safe to eat.
Products carrying a safety-related date would instead be required to use the phrase “USE By,” signaling that the manufacturer advises consumers not to eat the product after that date.
The legislation would allow abbreviated versions — “BB” and “UB” — only when packaging is too small to accommodate the full wording.
Labels would remain voluntary
One notable feature of the proposal is what it does not do.
The bill does not require manufacturers to place date labels on food products. Instead, it establishes standards for companies that voluntarily choose to use them.
The legislation specifically states that decisions about whether to include quality dates or discard dates would remain at the discretion of the company responsible for the food label.
Supporters argue that approach preserves flexibility for food producers while still ensuring consumers receive consistent information when date labels are used.
New requirements for visibility and consumer education
The proposal would also establish formatting requirements intended to make date labels easier to find and understand.
Quality and discard dates would need to appear in a single, easy-to-read type style and be displayed prominently on food packaging. Dates would need to be presented using a standard month-year or month-day-year format, depending on the product.
Manufacturers would be permitted to supplement labels with technologies such as QR codes, smart labels and time-temperature indicators. They could also add the phrase “or freeze by” after a quality or discard date where appropriate.
The bill would require the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services to develop a national consumer education campaign explaining the meaning of the new labels within two years of enactment.
Federal rules would override state standards
The legislation would create a nationwide standard by limiting states and local governments from establishing different food date labeling requirements.
States would be prohibited from enforcing date-labeling rules that differ from the federal system outlined in the bill. However, the legislation preserves the authority of states to regulate the sale or donation of foods after a discard date has passed.
The proposal also clarifies that infant formula would remain exempt because it is already subject to separate federal labeling requirements.
How the law would be implemented
If Congress approves the measure and it is signed into law, federal agencies would have two years to write regulations implementing the new standards. Food manufacturers would then have an additional transition period before compliance becomes mandatory.
The bill would also amend federal food, meat, poultry and egg inspection laws to classify products that fail to comply with the new labeling standards as improperly labeled or misbranded.
As of June 2026, the legislation remains in committee and has not advanced to a vote in either chamber of Congress.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to news@fingerlakes1.com.
