# Out of date feed?



## Mominis (Aug 14, 2010)

We went to TSC today to pick up feed. I found the Omolene right off the bat and it was marked down to $5/bag as opposed to $15.90!! I couldn't believe it, so I asked the salesperson about it. He said that Purina would allow them to sell feed that is up to 120 days past it's expiration date. I checked the date on the bags and it expired April 13. The salesman was saying what a great deal it was for the price, but I passed it by. I wouldn't have bought milk that was over the expiration date for my family, so I didn't do it for my horse. Would you have bought it?

Edited to add: My husband thought we should have bought it, but I asked him if he thought risking a $2500 colic surgery was worth $10 off of a bag of feed. He said I was being overly-cautious, but didn't argue with me. So, was I being too cautious?


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## wrs (Aug 14, 2010)

I wouldn't have bought it either.


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## Jill (Aug 14, 2010)

No way! I wouldn't feed it for free. I follow your reasoning totally, however, the one time (7yrs ago) one of our horses needed colic surgery it was around $7,500 before we brought her home if I am remembering right... She was insured so I didn't write the check, but it's not a good thing to have to pay for or worry about your horse over at all.


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## Becky (Aug 14, 2010)

A week or two out of date might not bother me, but 4 months certainly would. Fresh feed is very important to me. I just tossed 1/2 bag of $30 Foal Starter because I found a dead mouse in it. Ewwww..


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## ~Lisa~ (Aug 14, 2010)

I just discussed this with Purina.. the date on the bag is NOT AN EXPERIATION DATE it is simply the date it was bagged on.

They do not put an experation date on their feed.

The way it was explained to me is that in ideal storage situations.. meaning cool, dark dry that a textured feed "could" be good for up to 120 days again stored under ideal conditions. Now if your feed room tends to get hot like mine with no humidity you can lower that to about 45-60 days she said if you are in humid weather all bets are off it could be about 30 days from date stamped on the feed.

If you are using a non textured feed like Strategy or Ultium then you have a longer shelf life and again in ideal storage it can last she said 4-6 months.

So back to your question (knowing what I know now about the date and what it means) if this place had good storage and I knew I would go thru that feed quickly (if I had big horses or more then the amount of ponies and minis I have now) I would have gotten it. If it were winter time and heat not an issue so extended shelf life can be expected I would have bought it for sure


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## Charlotte (Aug 14, 2010)

I just threw out 50 lbs of milk replacer pellets....at over $60....which I bought in April and didn't use. I couldn't see anything wrong with it, but in this heat and humidity I'm not taking chances.

Right now we are buying feed in very small lots to be sure it stays fresh. It means more trips to the feed store, but is good for my peace of mind.

I would definitely not buy feed that far out of date. Just not worth it IMO.

Charlotte


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## wildoak (Aug 14, 2010)

Nope, I've passed it by before too. As Lisa said, conditions vary and if it was winter, colder weather and not so far past the bag date then maybe.... I don't hesitate to toss old food or feed though.

Jan


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## minih (Aug 14, 2010)

What Lisa said is true, and if it were here they would open the bag up so you could look at the feed. We have been having a problem with our regular supplier having bugs in the food, after taking 4 buggy bags back to them and getting our money back we have been buying from another town over from TSC. The difference is TSC keeps their stock in air conditioning, our reg supplier had their stuff out in the heat. I told the guy at tractor supply our problem when we first went and he busted the bag open for us so we could see it was good.

The date on the bag is when it is bagged, like Lisa said if it were kept in good conditions I would probably at least asked to see if it. If it was dark and not dry looking and no bugs I would have bought it.


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## disneyhorse (Aug 14, 2010)

Yes, that date is a BAGGED ON date, not and EXPIRATION date.

Therefore, it may have still been good.

However, I am a little bit obsessive-compulsive about expiration dates and my husband no longer rolls his eyes when I throw out containers of food with a "best by" or "sell by" date on them. He tries to explain that's not the EXPIRATION date, just a date to let markets know to rotate it out because it's got only a few days of "freshness" left on it.

But to me, a date is a date and that's the date I will no longer eat it.

However, the bagged-on date wouldn't be a date I'd toss it, because that's just silly to toss something out the day its made!

Anyway, I also would have passed, long story short, but just because of my own paranoia.

Andrea


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## Sue_C. (Aug 15, 2010)

disneyhorse said:


> Yes, that date is a BAGGED ON date, not and EXPIRATION date.
> 
> Therefore, it may have still been good.
> 
> ...



Here you go andrea, this will make it easier for you...









Still Tasty??


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## shorthorsemom (Aug 15, 2010)

Don't fry me for a stupid question, but where is the date stamped on the bag?. This string prompted me to go outside and check my horse feed bags for a date and I couldn't find it. Good awareness string, I can honestly admit to not checking the dates but I do know my feed store sells alot of feed and it is always very fresh. Didn't think about how long it takes me to go through a bag of feed with my minis though so if anybody could post the info as to where to look for the date I would appreciate.	Ps. I do know that it is always a good idea to keep the feed in its original bag rather than pour it into a can.


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## Minimor (Aug 15, 2010)

The date is found on the piece of paper that is sewn into the closure stitching on the bag, at least that's where all of our feed has its date and nutritional info.

I would have likely asked if the feed was guaranteed to be good--as long as the grain had been stored properly and wasn't moldy of bug infested I wouldn't be concerned about using it. To be honest I very often don't even look at the tag on my grain. When I have looked, the oats is usually bagged 2 to 6 weeks prior to purchase but since I often don't look, some could be older or newer. As long as oats and pellets are in good condition when I open the bag, I'm not worried about the date.

Since the date on the bag is the date it was bagged, we would never get grain that was dated with a future date--it's impossible since we cannot buy it before it is bagged.


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## Mominis (Aug 15, 2010)

Thanks, guys. You really made me feel better about deciding not to buy it.


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## rabbitsfizz (Aug 15, 2010)

If it had been a couple of weeks over, yes I would have bought it. I would also have asked what "come back" I had if I opened it and found it was "off" as $5.00 is cheap but it is expensive if you have to chuck the stuff away!

Normally, what goes is the vitamin content, everything else is OK as it has molasses, or honey, or whatever else it has in it to preserve it.

What is guaranteed up to the expiry date is the vitamin content.

I liver out of the "reduced" section of my supermarket as I can afford to feed two out of three: the horses, the dogs or me, on premium food, but not all three.

Guess who gets the cheap stuff?

That being said I have yet to get food poisoning, and I live quite well.

Until they locked the bins I was also living out of the bins _behind_the supermarket, and do not mind who knows it.

I am a bag lady in training, but my dogs eat meat and my horses have good grain


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## Katiean (Aug 16, 2010)

My niece has taken at least one mouth full of all of our animal feeds and that includes wet and dry dog and cat food. If it doesn't taste good to her she won't feed it to the animals. So, you might have tasted it to see if it tasted good and if it had enough moisture in it. I never feed a dry textured feed to my animals. Well, maybe the chickens.


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## billiethekid40 (Aug 16, 2010)

Thanks for that site Sue, hubby asks me at least 3-4 times a week "would this still be good" when he takes leftovers out of the fridge... now I can point him to the site instead of just guessing! Now... if only we could remember when things were bought/cooked lol. Need to start labeling things.

As for the feed, to me it would have depended on the type of feed. Like most processed foods, I'm sure pelleted feeds last a bit longer than mixed feeds with whole grains and most likely would go "stale" and not spoil. If it looked and smelled fresh I would likely have bought it. With the heat and himidity we have had here this summer though, unless the warehouse was climate controlled I'd have left it pelleted or not.


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## disneyhorse (Aug 16, 2010)

Sue_C. said:


> Here you go andrea, this will make it easier for you...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Ha ha ha... I still don't know about that site



I can't be convinced





For instance, it said that bottled garlic is good for up to TWO YEARS in the fridge after being opened... but the jar I just bought said "three months" and that's a pretty dramatic difference?

I write the date opened in permanent marker on jars that I open and refrigerate. To each his own... if anyone wants "older" food, come get it or I'll toss it anyway! 

Andrea


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