{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://newhouse.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/newhouse-reintroduces-bicameral-bill-standardize-food-date-labels-cut", "Newhouse Reintroduces Bicameral Bill to Standardize Food Date Labels, Cut Food Waste", "2023-05-09", "2023", "2023-05", "Republican", "House", "WA", "Dan Newhouse", "N000189", "newhouse.house.gov", "newhouse", "https://newhouse.house.gov/media-center/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Reps. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) and Chellie Pingree (D-ME) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) reintroduced the bicameral Food Date Labeling Act, a bill designed to end consumer confusion around food date labeling by standardizing date labels on food products to ensure usable food is not thrown away.\n\n\u201cWhile we in Central Washington, just like people across the nation, continue to struggle with high prices in the grocery store, an estimated 40 percent of the food production in the U.S. goes to waste. It's important Americans are not prematurely throwing out safe food\u2014and that starts with bettering our food labeling practices,\u201d said Rep. Newhouse, co-chair of the Food Recovery Caucus. \u201cThe Food Date Labeling Act will end the consumer confusion around food date labeling so we can reduce the amount of food wasted in our nation and allow Americans to save more of their hard-earned money.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur current food labeling practices are outdated, confusing, and completely arbitrary, resulting in around 90 percent of Americans prematurely throwing out perfectly safe food. This staggering waste takes a toll on families\u2019 wallets, on the environment, and on the economy,\u201d Pingree, co-chair of the Bipartisan Food Recovery Caucus. \u201cBy standardizing the food date labeling system and making labels less confusing for consumers, the bipartisan Food Date Labeling Act will help ensure food is being used and eaten, rather than being thrown out,\u201d said Rep. Pingree.\n\n\u201cThis legislation would provide consumers and grocers with a clear, consistent food labeling system. Current labels lack clarity about when products are safe to eat\u2014discouraging donations and contributing to food waste and insecurity. The Food Date Labeling Act is an important step toward streamlining our labeling process and reducing the 40 percent of our nation\u2019s food supply that is thrown away every year,\u201d said Senator Blumenthal.\n\nFull text of the bill can be found here.\n\nBackground:\n\nCurrently, there are no federal regulations related to date labels on food products, aside from infant formula. Date labeling regulations are left up to states, which means consumers are left trying to sort out a patchwork of confounding terms. \u201cSell by,\u201d \u201cuse by,\u201d \u201cfreshest on,\u201d and \u201cexpires on\u201d are just a few of the phrases currently being used on food products.\n\nThe Food Date Labeling Act establishes an easily understood food date labeling system\u2014\u201cBEST If Used By\u201d communicates to consumers that the quality of the food product may begin to deteriorate after the date and \u201cUSE By\u201d communicates the end of the estimated period of shelf life, after which the product should not be consumed. Under the bill, food manufacturers can decide which of their products carry a quality date or a discard date. It also allows food to be sold or donated after its labeled quality date, helping more food reach those who need it.\n\nAn estimated 40 percent of food produced in the U.S. is wasted. Domestic food production accounts for significant land use, water usage, and energy consumption and results in 11% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, recovering food helps reduce climate change and ensures that the hard work and resources that go into producing food is not wasted.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T23:55:44Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://newhouse.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/newhouse-reintroduces-bicameral-bill-standardize-food-date-labels-cut"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.467280089855194, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}