California Bans ‘Sell By’ Dates: What You Need to Know About Food Labels

“Sell by” doesn’t indicate when your milk will go bad—it’s to help grocers rotate stock.

California has become the first state to ban "Sell By' dates on packaged foods, as seen here on Oct. 2, 2024, in Alhambra, California. California Governor Gavin Newsom on September 30 signed the country's first mandatory food date labeling reform bill, Assembly Bill 660, which will standardize date labels and is due to go into effect on July 1, 2026. Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images/TNS

By Sandra McDonald From Los Angeles Times

There you are, reaching on your tiptoes in the grocery store to grab the milk on the highest shelf marked with the latest date. It’s worth it, you think, to get milk that will stay fresher longer.