California AB 660 Guide
California AB 660 standardizes certain quality- and safety-date terms for covered foods manufactured on or after July 1, 2026. It does not mandate a markdown price or schedule.
What is AB 660?
Assembly Bill 660 was approved and chaptered on September 28, 2024. For covered foods manufactured on or after July 1, 2026, a manufacturer, processor, or retailer responsible for labeling that chooses, or is otherwise required, to display a quality or safety date must use a permitted term.
A person generally may not sell a covered item bearing a nonconforming quality or safety date or a consumer-readable "sell by" phrase. Applicability depends on the product, manufacturing date, labeling responsibility, statutory exceptions, federal law, and other requirements.
1 Standardized Date Labels
Permitted quality terms are "BEST if Used by" and "BEST if Used or Frozen by." Permitted safety terms are "USE by" and "USE by or Freeze by." Limited "BB" and "UB" abbreviations are available for specified small items and beverages. The statute includes exceptions and does not itself require a date label where none is otherwise displayed.
2 Consumer-Readable "Sell By" Labels
Covered items manufactured on or after July 1, 2026 generally may not be sold with the phrase "sell by" displayed to consumers. Coded inventory dates that are not easily readable by consumers and do not use that phrase are not prohibited by this provision.
3 Quality Dates and Safety Dates
The "BEST" terms indicate a quality date; the "USE" terms indicate a safety date. If an exact-build-verified scanner returns an estimate, treat it as supplemental product information; it does not replace a required label or change the legal meaning of a safety date.
4 Scope and Exceptions
The chaptered text does not state the advertised $1,000- or $10,000-per-day civil penalties. It includes exclusions for infant formula, eggs and pasteurized in-shell eggs, beer and other malt beverages, specified shellfish rules, and federal preemption. Consult qualified counsel about enforcement and your specific obligations.
Compliance Timeline
AB 660 approved and chaptered
Businesses reviewed product scope, labeling responsibility, and workflows
Labeling provisions in effect for covered foods manufactured on or after this date
Potential Future Operational Support
Planned Markdown Workflows
A future workflow could support business-defined markdown rules after customer review. This is not a current production capability, and AB 660 does not require a particular markdown percentage or schedule.
Planned Date Tracking
A future, separately scoped workflow could route date labels for human review without replacing required label terms or safety decisions.
Planned Operational Reporting
Internal label, markdown, and waste reports are planned concepts, not generally available features. AB 660 itself does not require quarterly waste reports or state-audit exports.
Planned Consumer Education
Explanatory messaging and signage are planned concepts, not generally available features or a retailer requirement under AB 660.
This material describes planned product concepts and is not legal advice or a commitment to deliver them. AB 660 applicability depends on the product, manufacturing date, labeling responsibility, statutory exceptions, and other law. Consult qualified counsel or the appropriate California agency. Read the official statute.