FridgeAI Glossary

Plain-English explanations of food-storage and food-waste terms.

Best By

"Best by" (also written "best if used by") is a manufacturer's estimate of peak quality, not a safety deadline. Outside infant formula, US federal law doesn't require or standardize these dates at all — most food is still safe to eat after the date passes. The confusion is a major driver of household food waste.

Best By vs. Use By vs. Sell By

"Sell by" is a stocking instruction for the retailer, not you. "Best by" is a quality estimate from the manufacturer. "Use by" is the closest thing to a safety-oriented date — but only infant formula is legally required to carry one. All three are widely inconsistent because, outside that one exception, no US federal law standardizes any of them.

FIFO (First In, First Out)

FIFO ("first in, first out") is a stock-rotation principle from professional kitchens and food service: older stock gets used before newer stock, so nothing sits at the back going off while a fresher version gets used from the front. At home, it's less a system to install and more a habit — put new groceries behind the old ones, and cook from what's already open before what's still sealed.

Root-to-Stem Cooking

Root-to-stem cooking means treating the whole vegetable as usable — stems, leaves, peels, tops — rather than only the parts a typical recipe calls for. Carrot tops, broccoli stems, and radish leaves are all edible and often flavorful; root-to-stem cooking is the practice of using them instead of discarding them by habit.