Food packaging is built to reassure shoppers. Certain words sound meaningful but often describe far less than people assume. In the U.S., some labels are regulated, some are loosely guided, and others ...

Walking through a grocery store can feel straightforward, but much of what appears simple is carefully engineered. Packaging, ...

Roughly nine years ago, while serving as Vice President for Food Safety at the world’s largest food retailer, I surveyed how many different date labels were used by food producers to convey that food ...

Ms. Morgan is a food systems consultant. Mr. Bittman is a former Opinion columnist and a special adviser on food at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. Whether you shop for food in ...

A new California law further regulates food safety labels and will take effect in 2026. “Sell by” labels, used by grocers to help rotate stock, will be banned. “Best if used by” indicates best food ...