The u2018date of minimum durabilityu2023 describes the shelf-life of a foodu00a0 product. It is the date until which a food product retains its specificu00a0 properties when properly stored. The date of minimum durability of au00a0 food must be indicated by a u2018best-beforeu2023 or a u2018use-byu2023 date.A u2018best-beforeu2023 date will reflect the quality of a foodu00a0 product e.g. taste, aroma, appearance, rather than the safety of theu00a0 product. Typically a best-before date is declared on food products suchu00a0 as canned, dried and frozen foods. A u2018use-byu2019u00a0 date is used on food products which, from a microbiological point ofu00a0 view, are highly perishable and are therefore likely after a shortu00a0 period, to constitute a danger to health. This applies to most chilledu00a0 foods e.g. yogurt, milk, meat. The manufacturers of the food product are responsible for determining anu00a0 accurate and consistent shelf-life, as manufacturers are more familiaru00a0 with the nature of, and ingredients used, in a final food. It is not upu00a0 to the retailer to establish a best-before or use-by date of any foodu00a0 product. Manufacturers must conduct studies to determine if the food productu00a0 complies with microbiological criteria throughout the productsu00a0 shelf-life. Usually, the Food Safety Board of each country comes up with a set of guidelines that helps the manufacture determine this date.In case of Medicines, theu00a0 expiry date of a medicine is calculated on the basis of a study calledu00a0 the stability study, which is conducted at different temperatures andu00a0 relative humidity conditions. Based on the results of the study theu00a0 expiry date is calculated. sources: Best-before and Use-by Dates