California Bans “Sell By” Food Labels in Push to Cut Waste and Consumer Confusion

California’s ban on consumer-facing “sell by” food labels took effect July 1, making the state the first in the nation to require standardized date language on most food products sold to consumers.

The new law, Assembly Bill 660, requires food manufacturers, processors and retailers that use date labels on food manufactured on or after July 1, 2026, to use limited, uniform phrases. Labels tied to food quality must say “Best if Used by” or “Best if Used or Frozen by.” Labels tied to food safety must say “Use by” or “Use by or Freeze by.” The law also bars food products covered by the statute from being sold in California if they carry the phrase “sell by” on consumer-facing packaging.

The change is aimed at a long-running source of confusion in American kitchens: the difference between a date that tells a store how long to display a product and a date that tells a consumer when food may no longer be safe to eat. “Sell by” dates have traditionally been used by retailers for stock rotation, not as a safety warning. But state lawmakers and food-waste advocates say many shoppers treat those labels as expiration dates and throw away food that remains safe to eat.

AB 660 does not require every food product to carry a date label. Rather, it controls the words that can be used when a manufacturer, processor or retailer chooses to display a quality or safety date, or when another law requires one. The law also allows coded “sell by” information for inventory purposes if the code is not easily readable by consumers and does not use the phrase “sell by.”

The California Department of Food and Agriculture says the law is intended to separate quality dates from safety dates. A “Best if Used by” label refers to peak freshness or product quality. A “Use by” label signals when a food item is no longer safe to eat. That distinction is central to the law’s consumer-protection purpose.

The law contains several exceptions. It does not apply to infant formula, eggs, pasteurized in-shell eggs, beer or other malt beverages. It also allows grocery stores to use “packed on” labels for prepared foods, as long as those items also carry a compliant quality or safety label. Wine, distilled spirits and certain related products may still carry labels stating when they were produced, manufactured, bottled or packaged.

The measure also reflects a gap in federal food-labeling law. Except for infant formula, federal law generally does not require quality-based date labels on packaged foods. The FDA says there are no uniform or universally accepted descriptions for open date labels in the United States, which has allowed phrases such as “sell by,” “best by,” “expires on” and others to appear across food packaging.

Federal agencies have encouraged greater uniformity, but they have not imposed a national standard. In 2024, the FDA and USDA sought public input on food date labeling, citing concerns that consumers may mistake quality dates for safety dates and prematurely discard wholesome food. The agencies said confusion over date labels accounts for about 20% of food waste in the home.

California’s law goes beyond federal guidance by mandating standardized language for covered products sold in the state. As a practical matter, the rule could affect food packaging beyond California, as national manufacturers may find it easier to use the same compliant labels across multiple markets rather than create separate packaging for a single state.

The law was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September 2024 and built on an earlier California effort to encourage voluntary use of standard food-date language. Lawmakers moved from voluntary guidance to mandatory labeling after advocates argued that inconsistent terms continued to drive unnecessary waste.

Supporters say the change could help households save money, reduce landfill waste and improve food donations. The Associated Press reported that food banks have struggled with products marked by “sell by” dates because some donors and recipients assume those dates mean the food has expired.

Food waste also carries environmental consequences. CDFA says CalRecycle reports that 2.5 billion meals’ worth of unspoiled food is thrown away in California each year, and that organic waste makes up a large share of what Californians send to landfills. As organic material breaks down, it contributes to methane emissions.

For consumers, the new labels are meant to provide a simpler rule. “Best if Used by” concerns quality. “Use by” concerns safety. Food past a quality date is not automatically unsafe, although consumers should still consider storage conditions and signs of spoilage. Food marked with a safety date should be handled with greater caution.

For businesses, the law sets a compliance deadline tied to the product's manufacturing date. Covered foods manufactured on or after July 1, 2026, must use the approved terminology if they carry a quality or safety date and cannot display the consumer-facing phrase “sell by.” Older inventory may remain on shelves for some time as stores sell through products labeled before the effective date.

The law also includes a preemption clause stating that any provision preempted by federal law does not apply and cannot be enforced. That language reflects the broader legal balance in food regulation, where federal agencies oversee many labeling issues but states may regulate in areas not displaced by federal law.

California’s move may increase pressure for a national rule. New York lawmakers have approved similar legislation that, as of early July, was awaiting action by Gov. Kathy Hochul, and proposals have also been introduced in other states. Without a federal standard, food companies could face a growing patchwork of state rules governing the words used on date labels.

For now, California has turned a familiar grocery-store phrase into a legal issue. The state’s bet is that clearer labels will help shoppers distinguish between food that is past its peak and food that should no longer be eaten.