Can Food Pantries Give Expired Food? Dates, Safety, and Donor Law

Yes, food pantries can give out food that is past the date printed on the package, and most do it routinely. Those dates are manufacturer estimates about peak quality, not safety deadlines, and federal law protects nonprofits that distribute past-date food in good faith. There is one narrow exception, infant formula, covered below.

What the Date on the Package Actually Means

With one exception, no federal law requires a date label on food at all. Manufacturers choose whether to print one and what to call it. The USDA defines the common phrases this way:

“Best if Used By/Before” marks when the product will taste or perform its best. It is not a purchase or safety date.
“Sell-By” tells the store how long to display an item. It is not a safety date.
“Use-By” is the last date the manufacturer recommends for peak quality. It is not a safety date, except on infant formula.

A can of beans stamped “Best By March 2026” does not turn dangerous on April 1. It may taste a little less fresh over time. The date says nothing about whether the food will make someone sick.

The One Exception: Infant Formula

Infant formula is the only food product federal regulations require to carry a “Use By” date. FDA rules require manufacturers to set that date based on testing showing the formula will contain no less than the labeled quantity of each nutrient, and will otherwise remain of acceptable quality, until the date printed on the container.¹ After that date, nutrient levels can fall below what an infant needs. Pantries should not distribute infant formula past its “Use By” date, and most treat this as a hard rule.

The Federal Law That Protects Pantries and Donors

The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act shields both donors and the nonprofits that distribute donated food from civil and criminal liability, provided the donation is made in good faith.² That protection falls away only if someone acted with gross negligence or intentional misconduct, meaning they knew the food was likely to harm someone and handed it over anyway.³

The food has to qualify as “apparently wholesome,” defined in the statute as food that meets all federal, state, and local quality and labeling standards even if it isn’t easy to sell because of appearance, age, freshness, grade, size, or surplus.² A dented can of soup past its “Best By” date fits that description. Food that doesn’t meet those standards can still be donated, but only if the donor tells the receiving nonprofit, the nonprofit agrees to bring the items up to standard, and the nonprofit knows how to do so.⁴

Congress expanded the law in January 2023. Nonprofits can now charge a reduced price for donated food without losing liability protection, as long as the price doesn’t exceed the cost of handling, processing, and distributing it.⁵

How Pantries Decide What to Hand Out

Past-date does not mean unchecked. When donations arrive, trained staff and volunteers inspect every item and reject anything with compromised packaging: torn bags, deeply dented or bulging cans, rust, or broken seals. Those physical signs matter far more than a printed date because they can point to bacterial contamination or failed preservation. A clean, undamaged can of green beans two years past its “Best By” date is safer than a bulging can still inside its date window.

Storage does the rest of the work. Refrigerated items are kept at 41°F or below and frozen goods at 0°F or below. Food held constantly at 0°F stays safe indefinitely, though texture and flavor decline over time.⁶ Dry goods are usually stored off the floor and away from walls to keep moisture and pests out, and stock is rotated first-in, first-out so older items move before newer ones.

How Long Past the Date Common Foods Stay Good

Shelf life depends on the food and the storage, but most items last well beyond the printed date.

Low-acid canned goods like meat, vegetables, and soup hold their quality for two to five years when stored properly, and the food stays safe as long as the can has no rust, deep dents, or swelling.⁷
High-acid canned goods, including tomatoes, fruits, and pickled items, keep their best quality for up to 18 months.⁷
Frozen food kept constantly at 0°F is safe to eat no matter how long it has been frozen; it may dry out or lose flavor, but it won’t cause illness.⁶
Dry packaged goods such as cereal, pasta, and cookies stay safe well past their “Best By” date, though they can go stale or develop an off flavor.⁸

The real warning signs are sensory. Off smells, visible mold, unusual or slimy texture, and cans that bulge or hiss when opened all mean the food should be thrown out, whatever the date says.

What to Do If You Receive Past-Date Food

If a pantry gives you an item with a date that has already passed, someone inspected the packaging and checked the storage before it reached you. You don’t need to discard it based on the date alone. Trust your senses at home: if something smells wrong, looks discolored, or feels off, throw it out. The one place the printed date is a hard limit is infant formula, which should never be used past its “Use By” date because nutrient levels can no longer be guaranteed.¹

1
eCFR. 21 CFR Part 107 – Infant Formula
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 US Code 1791 – Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act
3
U.S. Department of Agriculture. Good Samaritan Act Provides Liability Protection For Food Donations
4
United States Department of Agriculture. Frequently Asked Questions about the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act
5
Congress.gov. Text – HR 6251 – 117th Congress (2021-2022) Food Donation Improvement Act
6
FoodSafety.gov. Cold Food Storage Chart
7
Ask USDA. How Long Can You Keep Canned Goods
8
U.S. Department of Agriculture. Before You Toss Food, Wait. Check It Out!