Tuesday, May 29, 2012

I Always Wondered About This...!

Some questions in life just never really get answered, at least to my satisfaction.

Up until just now, this was on my short list of things I really wanted to know. Thanks to the folks over at Mental Floss, I can now remove this one question off my list! Isn't that great?


Why Does Bottled Water Have an Expiration Date?
by Matt Soniak


Have you ever wondered why that bottle of Poland Spring has a “drink by” date on it when common sense dictates that water doesn’t go bad? You can thank the great state of New Jersey. A 1987 NJ state law required all food products sold there to display an expiration date of two years or less from the date of manufacture. Labeling, separating and shipping batches of expiration-dated water to the Garden State seemed a little inefficient to bottled water producers, so most of them simply started giving every bottle a two-year expiration date, no matter where it was going.

Now, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has never established or suggested a limitation on the shelf life of bottled water as long as it’s produced in accordance with regulations and the bottle remains properly sealed. Makes sense, because it’s, you know…water. Even Dirty Jerz caught on to this fact and amended the law a few years ago. But the expiration date has been an industry norm for so long that many producers have just kept it on there.

While “expired” unopened bottled water isn’t going to do you any harm, it isn’t going to get better with age, either. The plastic that water is packaged in — usually polyethylene terephthalate (PET) for retail bottles and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) for water cooler jugs — is slightly porous, so the water can pick up smells and tastes from the outside world. Keep a case of bottled water in the basement for a year or so and it’s going to pick up some interesting flavors. There’s nothing better on a hot summer day than a 2007 Evian, with hints of dust and a crisp kitty litter finish!


I have to admit that I feel much more satisfied now that I have found the answer to yet another one of my many questions! That alone should show you just a little of how my twisted mind works!

Think I have too much time on my hands?

How about fresh coffee on the patio this morning! I have some freshly baked (yesterday) brownies to go along with it!

15 comments:

Gorges Smythe said...

And now we know! ,-)

HermitJim said...

Hey Gorges...
Yep...now we know! Another mystery solved!

Thanks for coming by today!

Phylis (N/W Jersey) said...

Ah, wonderful, regulated New Joisey!
(Did you know that of all the states that have two words in them & people ask where you are from and you just reply 'Jersey', they know right where you live?)
Brownies?? Yummy!

Ben in Texas said...

Never paid any attention to any expiration date on bottled water. Figured when it's useful time limit had come , it just evaporated.

I got brownies also, but think I'll save them for afternoon snack.

Momlady said...

Wondered about that. Didn't make any sense to me. Brownies?! Yum!!

Kellie said...

I always figured it had something to do with 'standing water' and how 'running water' was healthier.

Rob said...

and now you have the rest of the story.....Paul Harvey, Good Day.

linda m said...

I wasn't too concerned that my bottled water would "expire", but now I know. If I am dying of thirst and all I have is 4 year old bottled water, you can bet you bottom dollar on the fact that I will drink that "expired" water. haha Brownies sound good to me. Thanks

Stephen said...

I've got a couple of bottle of water in two of my 'get home' bags. The bottles are at least five years old. I suppose the water now has the flavor of canvas, old socks and gun oil....perhaps I should replace them. Then again...

JO said...

I never even thought of this with bottled water. I keep one the car for Fred all the time. Mine usualy is have frozen from the freezer and topped off. But if his is hot I will share.

Brownies? I'll be there.

HermitJim said...

Hey Phyllis...
Now we know who to complain to id we have a problem, right?

Thanks for the visit this morning!


Hey Ben...
I bought some powdered water, but I don't know what to mix with it!

Thanks, buddy, for coming by this morning!


Hey Momlady...
Sorta one of those nagging questions that we wonder about.

At least we can replace that question with another!

Thanks for coming over today!


Hey Kellie...
Glad I wasn't the only one that didn't know!

If water has been sitting for a while and seems tasteless, all you have to do is shake it up to add some oxygen to it and it taste better!

Thanks for dropping by today!


Hey Rob...
It does sound like a story that Paul Harvey would do, doesn't it?

Hey, I appreciate you coming by today!


Hey Linda...
I can certainly go along with that! Old or not...it's going down the hatch!

Thanks for the visit this morning!


Hey Stephen...
Might make for some interesting taste for sure!

Do they make a "odor removing tablet?"

Thanks for coming by today!


Hey JoJo...
I'm sure he appreciates you sharing your cold water, especially in the Summer!

Thanks, sweetie, for coming by this morning!

Dizzy-Dick said...

Just think, we are now drinking water that may have come out of a dinosaur.

Mayberry said...

Stupid government regulations... Oy!

BBC said...

Actually, water does go bad if left in sunlight.

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

HermitJim, as a former NJ resident, it's understandable but confusing that one of the smallest states and most densely populated wants to come up with regulations for everyone. It's sort of like a Napoleon complex don't you think?