What kinds of things should I look for when buying food?
Check for expiry and best-before dates. Don’t buy foods past the expiry date.
Expiry dates are specific to perishable items, especially those that may pose health risks if consumed after the date. Consuming foods past their expiry date can lead to foodborne illnesses.
Best-before dates provide information on freshness and the potential shelf life of foods. While taste and texture may decrease over time, these dates do not reflect product safety.
When buying food, consider the following factors to reduce your risk of a foodborne illness:
- Don’t buy cracked or damaged eggs. Look inside the carton of eggs before buying them.
- Avoid buying bruised or damaged fruits or vegetables.
- Put raw foods, such as meats, in plastic bags and keep them away from other foods in your cart.
- Don’t buy foods that have damaged or opened packaging. Damaged or opened packaging may allow germs to enter or promote germs to grow.
- Don’t buy foods if there’s water in the package (e.g., packaged fruits, vegetables, or meat) when water should not be in the package. This might mean the food is contaminated or not packaged properly.
- Don’t buy cans that are leaking, rusting, denting, or bulging, as they may be contaminated.
- If using reusable bags, wash them often.
Practice safe food handling when grocery shopping by picking up refrigerated and frozen foods last. Then, if available pack these items in insulated bags/containers and head straight home to store your groceries properly.
