# Buying meat from the "day old" bin at the grocery-creepy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 4, 2013, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434 "2013-12-04T03:20:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/41 "2013-12-05T06:23:40Z")
> [@DummyGladHands](#): > > I was told it is. It’s not actually “day old” of course, but rather on or a day or 2 before its sell by date. I mean, it goes home and right into the freezer or is eaten that night, but my friend said she would NEVAH. > > Obviously if it’s green or something I pass, but does anyone else take advantage of those bargains? If I know I’ll use it or freeze it in time, and it looks/smells OK, heck yeah! ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/42 "2013-12-05T06:38:55Z")
> [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#): > > [You think someone would do that? Just go on the internet and tell lies?](https://www.google.com/search?q=horse+meat+aldi&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a) > > [2013 horse meat scandal - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_meat_adulteration_scandal) Gosh, I sure am lucky I’m not in a location that gets it’s beef from Romania, and am instead in the very beef-intensive Kansas City. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/43 "2013-12-05T07:46:51Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Gosh, I sure am lucky I’m not in a location that gets it’s beef from Romania, and am instead in the very beef-intensive Kansas City. Yup, and I’m glad I’m in Cafe Society, were we make silly lighthearted jokes, and not in Great Debates where they demand cites and get pissy. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/44 "2013-12-05T08:08:15Z")
If your friend is actually saying it is **creepy** , she is a snob. (If she is merely saying something like that it is dangerous, she is merely mistaken.) ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/45 "2013-12-05T16:08:54Z")
> [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#): > > Yup, and I’m glad I’m in Cafe Society, were we make silly lighthearted jokes, and not in Great Debates where they demand cites and get pissy. I couldn’t tell. Probably because it wasn’t funny. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/46 "2013-12-05T16:40:26Z")
If they’re willing to sell it and it doesn’t look or smell funky, I’ll buy it. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/47 "2013-12-05T16:46:00Z")
If it wasn’t safe to eat for at least a day or two past the sell-by date, the sell-by date would be sooner. [eatbydate](http://www.eatbydate.com) has guides for how long foods should still be good, cooked, thawed, and frozen. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/48 "2013-12-05T17:27:41Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > After working in a grocery store for a few months, you might be surprised. While facing product one day, I came across yogurt and other dairy that had been expired for nearly 3 months. > > Check the dates. Humans make mistakes! I was at the natural foods store a few weeks ago, and saw some frozen dinners that were marked way down. The expiration date was 2009. :eek: It was one of those things where it didn’t occur to me to get the manager until I was on my way home. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/49 "2013-12-07T00:31:23Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I was at the natural foods store a few weeks ago, and saw some frozen dinners that were marked way down. The expiration date was 2009. :eek: > > It was one of those things where it didn’t occur to me to get the manager until I was on my way home. :rolleyes: Several hours after I posted this, I was at the same market, and saw some yogurt that “expired” November 27. I told the manager than I would buy it all if I was charged half price. She said I could, so I did. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/50 "2013-12-07T00:46:38Z")
> [@DummyGladHands](#): > > I was told it is. It’s not actually “da old” of course, but rather on or a day or 2 before its sell by date. I mean, it goes home and right into the freezer or is eaten that night, but my friend said she would NEVAH. > > Obviously if it’s green or something I pass, but does anyone else take advantage of those bargains? Give your friend credit for being honest; I bet a lot of people won’t buy it, but won’t admit they won’t, if you see what I mean. And, I must admit, I would NEVAH freeze it; I only buy it if I can cook it that night. (I also never freeze pork or beef.) > [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > I need to look for this shelf/bin. The meat has “instant coupon” stickers; the vegetables are on a rack right by the door to the back room - they have to be cut up and cooked that day; processed / packaged food may be in bins at the front by the registers, but I think most of it is sent to food kitchens - write-off + PR + karma \> discounted price, and that’s fine. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/51 "2013-12-07T00:52:58Z")
I buy meat on sale all the time and freeze it. Never noticed a difference in quality myself. The biggest problem is remembering to defrost it and cook it within a reasonable time. Sometimes, I forget about that. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/52 "2013-12-07T01:39:23Z")
Bought a strip steak tonight on way home. Per pound price a few days ago–$12.99/lb. They marked it down to $7.99/lb today with expiration tomorrow… eating it as we speak. Taste that much better at today’s price. Done it perhaps 100 times the last five years. Never got sick, had problems, etc. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/53 "2013-12-07T03:47:44Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > Bought a strip steak tonight on way home. Per pound price a few days ago–$12.99/lb. > They marked it down to $7.99/lb today with expiration tomorrow… eating it as we speak. Taste that much better at today’s price. Done it perhaps 100 times the last five years. Never got sick, had problems, etc. I don’t know if people who get all freaked about the expiration date on steaks know about aged beef. That $50 steak at Ruth’s Chris? That particular piece of beef hung from a hook in the open air of a cooler _for twenty-one days_. The beef is so expensive, because the original cut shrinks up, and [they have to cut the _mold_ off the outside.](http://gizmodo.com/5866754/the-science-of-taste-or-why-dry+aged-meat-is-so-damned-delicious) Even the “fresh” beef at your store is “wet aged” in the vacuum sealed bag for at least a week to make it edible. ---
**Author:** ![Zago](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecccb3/32.png) [@Zago](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zago)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/54 "2013-12-08T01:47:17Z")
Expiration dates in the U.S. are very conservative, I’d have to hunt for a cite but I will say I recently heard a story on NPR about it. Having said that, I recently bought two rotted products: 1) a couple of onions from the loose bin, and 2) some pita bread - I didn’t bother to check the expiration date but I hope that it was mistakenly left on the shelf vs. labeled for actual consumption. ---
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2013, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/55 "2013-12-09T01:01:32Z")
Having been reassured and schooled by y’all, I got a 3 rib “prime rib” roast today in day-old. Marked down from $37 to $21, codes out today, happily waiting in my freezer now for the Sunday after Xmas ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2013, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/56 "2013-12-09T01:14:32Z")
> [@Zago](#): > > Having said that, I recently bought two rotted products: 1) a couple of onions from the loose bin, and 2) some pita bread - I didn’t bother to check the expiration date but I hope that it was mistakenly left on the shelf vs. labeled for actual consumption. Short of removing all them from each bin, tossing the old ones and putting fresh ones in, there is no way to avoid the occasional bad onion. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2013, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/57 "2013-12-09T17:10:58Z")
Absolutely – I couldn’t tell you the last time we bought non-stickered meat. At least two bucks off per pound? Hell yeah, sign me up. ---
**Author:** ![Eugene\_of\_Sandwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c37758/32.png) [@Eugene\_of\_Sandwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eugene_of_Sandwich)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/58 "2013-12-09T19:30:08Z")
Shoot yeah!! I also like the rack of bakery goods that’s been slashed to next to nothing. More for me! ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/59 "2013-12-10T00:09:45Z")
My supermarket discounts meat if it’s within a day or two of its expiration date. I’ve gotten some great discounts this way, assuming it looks ok. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434.md?page=2)