Original Research Article
DATE LABELS AND COLLEGE STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF MILK DRINKABILITY

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfca.2021.104249Get rights and content

Highlights

  • A date label is viewed as a purposeful communication intended for consumers

  • Milk in an unopened carton is described as undrinkable when the date expires

  • Date labels support confidence in judging milk quality but not safety

  • Lack of consistency in date label design common both within and among brands

  • Reduce food waste with education on date label limitations and safe food practices

Abstract

A thematic analysis of written responses to an intercept survey explored young adult beliefs about date labels and their use in judging milk quality and safety. General questions about label location and how it influenced shopping decisions were followed by specific questions on using labels to determine milk drinkability. College students in U.S. Northeast and Southwest participated in this qualitative study where they described the purpose of a label as ensuring milk freshness and to help them avoid illness. A question that contextualized container status as previously open or unopened found that respondents relied on an expiration date when deciding whether to drink milk or discard it. The majority responded, “no,” they would not drink from an expired container regardless of its open/unopened status. A theme of “freshness” dominated when participants were asked to describe what a date label told them about milk quality. While students were comfortable estimating quality some were less certain about food safety. They wrote that the date label told them nothing or that they “don’t know” what it told them. The majority would discard expired milk. In terms of recommended changes, a theme of noticeability emerged concerning label size, location, and format along with a subtheme of a need for standardization. Observations of milk containers in local stores found date label variability in location and phrase both within and among brands. Consumer education on the limitations of a date label coupled with training in safe food handling has the potential to build confidence in using edible postdated food and reduce its waste.

Introduction

Over a quarter of the daily food budget for U.S. consumers is lost when food is wasted. The cost of this waste has been described as more than a single-person household spends on vehicle gasoline, apparel, or household heat and electricity (Conrad, 2020). When edible food is wasted, so are the resources used to produce, process, transport, and store it. The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO, 2013) estimated the yearly cost of food waste at $750 billion and Buzby et al. (2014) estimated the cost of U.S. household and retail food waste at $18.3 billion a year. This loss has economic, social, and environmental consequences that directly impact global demand and contribute to food insecurity (Thyberg and Tonjes, 2016).

People are concerned about waste of edible food yet uncertain how to reduce it. Food handling in the home is one area where consumers directly influence waste particularly when judging the shelf life of packaged foods. These products have date (expiration) labels and consumers routinely use them as indicators of usability. These labels, which include a numeric date with a month, day, and year, are not regulated by the federal government and can vary in style, location, and wording (FLPC, 2019). Many consumers interpret date labels as safety warnings without realizing that their primary function is stock rotation that optimizes appeal in the retail market (Bloom, 2010). People see date labels as active forms of communication and understand them in broader terms than intended, ultimately using date labels to decide which food item to buy and when to discard it after purchase (Corallo et al., 2019). U.S. Department of Agriculture recommended that food industries standardize on “BEST if used by” as a label that consumers are likely to associate with quality. In a U.S. study of consumers who were 18-34 years old, Neff et al. (2019) found that “best if used by,” was in fact more likely to be associated with quality while “use by” was associated with safety.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore young adult perception of date labels and how they used them when selecting a carton of milk and when deciding to discard it after purchase.

Section snippets

Materials

Sold in a carton that is easily stored and used, milk is an economical source of dietary protein that is common in many homes but that can be a source of waste (Roe et al., 2018). Processing of milk is federally regulated with standardized products, such as whole, 2%, or skim, that are readily available in grocery stores. As a result, date labels on milk cartons are familiar to consumers and provide an easy point of reference for a discussion of package labeling on a perishable item. These

Sample

A total of 93 students participated in the intercept study with 19 eliminated due to incomplete or missing responses. Age ranged from 18 to 25 years old with a median of 20 years. Self-reported gender was 41 female, 31 male, 1 non-binary, and 1 unanswered. An introductory question asking where to find a date label on a carton of milk served to orient participants to the purpose of the survey. The majority placed it on the top while some mentioned the front or side as likely locations. When

Discussion

Wilson et al. (2019) tested the influence of a date label on anticipation of consuming a product and found that the label was the primary determinant regardless of subject characteristics. College students participating in the current study clearly expressed reservations about drinking from a container with an expired date regardless of whether it was opened or not, suggesting that a date label was the dominant determinant of drinkability for this group of subjects as well.

In an experiment

Declaration of Competing Interest

Priscilla L. Connors and William C. Schuelke certify that they have NO affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers’ bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, or other equity interest; and expert testimony or patent-licensing arrangements), or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge or beliefs) in the

FUNDING DISCLOSURE

University of North Texas Office of Research and Innovation Small Grant Award.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge the University of North Texas Libraries and the Foods and Nutrition Faculty, Department of Human Ecology, State University of New York at Oneonta for their support in making this onsite intercept survey possible.

References (13)

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  • Confusion of food-date label with food safety — implications for food waste

    2022, Current Opinion in Food Science
    Citation Excerpt :

    People who were aware of the meaning of date labeling were less likely to waste food [10]. Research has suggested that consumer education about date labels has the potential to reduce food waste [5,10,32,40]. Moreover, making ugly/suboptimal food products more acceptable should also be the theme of consumer education [34,41].

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