Expiration dates on non - perishable consumer goodness are a rummy thing . Few citizenry need an account as to why heart ordairy productshave a trade - by particular date , but other things seem to postulate a little more context . tyke car seats , for example , have an passing day of the month becausesafety regulating changeon a regular base and because they can have wear after age of everyday use .
A date stamp onbottled urine , however , seems to defy all laws of coarse sense . Should n’t H2O technically be in force forever ?
The response is yes — but water quality is n’t the emergence . A 1987New Jersey state lawrequired all food products sold there to exhibit an breathing out date of two year or less from the date of manufacture . Labeling , split , and shipping batches of expiration - go steady water to the Garden State seemed a little inefficient to bottled water producers , so most of them simply begin give everybottle a two - twelvemonth expiration appointment , no matter where it was going .
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has never established or suggested a limit on the ledge life of bottled water as long as it ’s bring out in accordance with regulations and the bottleful remains decently sealed . New Jersey caught on to this fact and amend the law , but the expiration date has been an industry norm for so long that many producer have just kept it on there .
While “ croak ” unopened bottled piddle is n’t go to do you any harm , it is n’t run to get sound with eld , either . The charge plate that water is packaged in — usually polyethylene terephthalate ( PET ) for retail bottles and high - density polyethylene ( HDPE ) for water cooler jugs — maybegin leachinginto the liquid , affecting its taste . It ’s also slightly holey , so the piddle can pick up smells and other unwelcome additives from the away mankind . The odds of a five - year - old bottle of Evian harming you are nigh nonexistent , but if it ’s been stored in your cellar , you might be good off reaching for a fresher feeding bottle .
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A interpretation of this story was originally published in 2023 and has been updated for 2025 .
