Skip to main content

Food expiration dates don’t mean what you think - Carolyn Beans

4,870,934 Views

16,410 Questions Answered

TEDEd Animation

Let’s Begin…

Countries around the world waste huge amounts of food every year: roughly a fifth of food items in the US are tossed because consumers aren’t sure how to interpret expiration labels. But most groceries are still perfectly safe to eat past their expiration dates. If the dates on our food don’t tell us that something’s gone bad, what do they tell us? Carolyn Beans shares how to prevent food waste.

About TED-Ed Animations

TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Carolyn Beans
  • Director Anton Bogaty
  • Narrator Alexandra Panzer
  • Music Salil Bhayani, cAMP Studio
  • Sound Designer Chengqing Zhu, cAMP Studio
  • Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
  • Producer Sazia Afrin
  • Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
  • Editorial Producer Dan Kwartler
  • Script Editor Carolyn Beans
  • Fact-Checker Charles Wallace

More from How Things Work