Ever wonder when that loaf of bread sitting on the grocery shelf was actually baked? Here's how you can tell at a glance.
With expiration dates and sell by dates still fresh on our minds, this article on "Breaking the Bread Code" from WiseBread caught our eye. They explain that those twisty-ties holding the bag closed are actually color-coded to indicate the day the bread was baked. With a few exceptions, the colors are universal for all breads to make it easier for grocery stores to recognize older loaves and pull them off the shelves.
Check out their visual guide above to see how fresh your bread really is!
• Read the Article - Breaking the Bread Code from WiseBread (via The Consumerist)
Related: No-Knead Bread Hack: Make a Sandwich Loaf Instead
(Image: WiseBread)
On Saying No to Paleo: Why Eating Isn't One Size Fits All
Perfect Summer Cocktail Recipe: Honey Bourbon Lemonade
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Elizabeth Apron fro...
100 DIY Ideas for the 3-Day Weekend
Danielle's Charming, Classic Walk-Up
Bread doesn't get baked on Wednesdays?
If you click through to the original article, it states: "Please note that if it’s Wednesday, you also want green. Sunday, you want yellow. For some reason, the system does not include those days. Some say it’s because bakers did not used to bake on Wednesdays and Sundays".
Who knew!
My husband was telling me about this a few weeks ago - this is very useful information!
maybe that's the day they bake cupcakes instead?
Way back when, I worked in a grocery store. Wednesdays and Sundays were the typical off days for the full-time folks in the grocery business. Deliveries on Saturday and Tuesday were larger to make up for the lack of them on Wednesday and Sunday.
The problem with this is that it's far from universal. Lots of commercial bakeries use different codes or a different system. The bread I buy has a day of the week printed on the twist tie, as do many. There's often a sell-by date, as well, or you can go by the tried and true method of digging for the loaf that's furthest back on the shelf.
Blue, green, red, white, yellow, its also alphabetical, there's no way I'd have kept track of this if it wasn't.
Is there color coding to tell you *which* Thursday?
This is a very cool piece of information. Thank you!
I have never seen colored bread tags.
So how long can you keep bread before it is no longer edible? Ours seems to go moldy too fast.
I thought bread was baked and bought fresh every day.
That's at least is what I do.
@FengShuiByFishgirl, your bread is getting moldy because it is real food! Real food gets moldy if it's not eaten. Food loaded with chemicals does not get moldy...but do you really want to put that into your body? If you're not big bread eaters, then save a bread bag and the next time you buy a loaf, immediately load half of it into the empty bag, seal out all the air and freeze it. You can double it into another bag for more protection.
As a former grocery manager, I can attest that this system is absolutely not universal. Each bakery has their own unique color-coding system, or other clever way to quickly identify older stock.
I read a comment from someone who said, Yellow for Sunday and Green for Wednesday. Bakers at the big chains i.e. Wonder, Weber, Sara Lee, Home Pride do have Sunday and Wednesday off, my uncle works for Sara Lee, bakers do not bake on those days. Technically, bread would be fresh on Wednesday since the bread is baked on Tuesday, just information passing on. Bakers do not work on Saturday so the bread is not fresh on Sunday. Best day to buy bread if you want fresh, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.