Listening: What Food Date Labels Really Mean

Answers and an explanation for each question appear once you add this activity to your own library.

B2 | Listening from video | 11 min

Watch the video (0:07 - 4:44). You can watch more than once, then answer the questions.

A NUMBER from the video.

In the United States, about ____ percent of food waste comes from households.

What do the dates in the open dating system actually show?

____ The best time to eat the food for its quality____ The last day the food is safe to eat____ The day the food was produced in the factory

Why do many manufacturers and retailers set the dates early?

____ Laws require them to use the earliest possible date____ Scientists test each product and choose a safe date____ They want customers to enjoy the food and come back

Canned food is usually unsafe to eat after its date has passed.

____ True____ False____ Not Given

A NUMBER from the video.

Refrigerated eggs can stay good for up to ____ weeks.

Which foods are more likely to carry harmful bacteria even before their printed dates?

____ Canned vegetables, dry pasta and cookies____ Ready-to-eat salads, deli meats and unpasteurized cheeses____ Frozen dinners, eggs and fresh carrots

More people in the survey lived in cities than in the countryside.

____ True____ False____ Not Given

A NUMBER from the video.

Federal standards could prevent roughly ____ tons of food waste every year.

What do countries like France do about unsold food?

____ They forbid shops from giving it away____ They tell shops to throw it away quickly____ They require many supermarkets to donate it

Related lessons

Class activity: Speaking Game: Mystery Dish Food Clues (Food)

Business Listening: Job Interview Tips

Listening: Handling Mistakes in Presentations

Listening: Languages with no numbers and no left or right

Listening: The story of how coffee spread around the world

Listening: How the Milky Way got its shape