3-On Your Side: Color Coded Bread Tags
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Did you ever buy a loaf of bread at the supermarket only to have it get stale just a few days later? Well 3-On Your Side Consumer Reporter Jim Donovan finds there may be a way to make sure you get the freshest bread on the shelf. The secret is often in those little twist ties and plastic closures and while it's not entirely foolproof, it's pretty close.
Whether it's white, wheat or rye, you can often determine freshness based on the colorful tag on the end of the bag. That rainbow of colors isn't just for decoration. The color of the closure tells you what day of the week that loaf likely came out of the oven. Even the urban legend website Snopes.com mentions it.
The tag for Monday is blue, Tuesday is green, Thursday is red, white is Friday and yellow is Saturday. Wednesday and Sunday aren't included that's because some say bakers traditionally don't bake bread on those days.
So if you shop on a Wednesday the green tag is the freshest you'll get, although it is a day old. Another way to remember? The colors are used in alphabetical order ---starting with blue on Monday, green on Tuesday and so on. The rule also seems to apply to other baked goods, like rolls and tortillas and it comes in especially handy at discount stores, that don't clear out their shelves every day.
Now, there are some exceptions. Some bread companies use the same color for every day of the week and they'll include a date on the tag. But remember, that's the sell-by date, not the day it was baked. When in doubt, if you shop at the same supermarket, ask the stock clerk or call the manufacturer.
Reported by Jim Donovan, CBS 3
