Thanks. I called them today, they said it was OK to put down the garbage disposal and recycle the jars, they couldn't (b/c of legal reasons) tell me it might be OK to bake with, but did say I don't need to treat it as hazardous waste. They are also sending me 5 replacements (not all curds, as I won't use them all within 6-month (!!) shelf life). The representative did agree that the outlet shouldn't have been selling anything with only a month left to expiration. I suggested that they put a big sticker with the expiration date on the lid, since I'm probably not the only one who wouldn't bother to look at the fine print on the label unless there was some indication that it was extremely perishable. Even their website doesn't mention the short shelf life.

We may be way over cautious but I'd rather err on the side of caution especially with children. Your local County Extension Service can give you FDA guidelines for food safety. Travel became an issue for me. Years ago while in Madrid I was violently sick to my stomach the first few nights after dinner. Our host practiced, as many Europeans, not refrigerating items which are commonly refrigerated here in the U.S. For the remainder of the trip I ate only saltine crackers and gingerale, I was already drinking bottled water only as was DD. My dear friend made a lovely fritata (eggs, potatoes, onions, etc.) which she served hot upon our arrival. It then sat on the counter unrefrigerated for the next few days while they snacked on it. When we returned home I visited my MD. He told me that I became ill due to bacteria introduced that my body was not equipped to handle. I am not at all immune compromised Our hosts have always lived this way so their bodies treat that bacteria differently. I found the refrigeration issue to be the same in France, Germany, Norway, Sweeden, Iceland. They just don't refrigerate commonly refrigerated food items as we do here in the States. Have been to many underdeveloped countries and DH has never had a problem? He is of the "when in Rome" mindset. I've seen him drink from the tap in places that just scream "you're gonna have an issue". He must have some superhuman immune system. Me, I drink only bottled water/drinks and always travel with a stash of pre-packaged foods items, as I want to be able to enjoy the entire trip wherever the destination. Over the years, I've discovered that four star doesn't mean the same thing once you leave the States. In fact, four star in some odd out of the way places means 1/2 a star by U.S. standards. As for meds, I was under the impression (with the exception of vitamins) that at most they can lose their effectiveness, not make you sick. Thanks for linking the article terriks.

I dispose of my out-of-date meds in a safe manner, like some posters above. Never have flushed or put them into our water system. When I first read this link I was skeptical, or rather cynical as to where these meds may end up. Did check out the link provided by roselvr, and like golddust, no pharmacies in my area currently participate in this program. The NCPA is composed of small independent pharmacies and we just don't have many of those where we live. Have to say that I have some similar concerns as expressed by lee676 in returning controlled substances to a pharmacy. While there are many regulations with regard to the dispensing of those type of meds, the NCPA link does not provide any info regarding any regulations with regard to their acceptance of unused medications, either controlled or not. I wonder how that would work. Also, I noticed that NCPA has a PAC that accepts donations for those who wish to support them as well. I think I want to investigate the NCPA's PAC a bit further before I try to enlist those small pharmacies in my area to participate. Until then I will continue to dispose of our unused or out-of-date meds via the method I've always used. Lee676 is correct about the one year expiration date printed on your medication label. I have a box of Tamiflu prescribed to DH in 11/2006 with an expiration of 11/2007 on the label. However, the expiration date imprinted on the box is 10/2010. Tamiflu is another expensive medication especially if you do not carry pharmacy insurance coverage. Why dispose of a perfectly good medication. In the event you need it again before the true expiration date, you pay for the med twice. I don't know that it is even legal for this practice to take place here. That may be why the CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aids, etc. pharmacies do not participate? When my old gal was put down, I tried to donate all of her meds back to our vet practice for patients who were unable to afford medications. They could not take them back. Many were meds that were in unopened sealed packaging? The local shelters would not take them either. Years back when my DGF passed, his family physician came to our home (I was a wee one, so we're going back quite some time) to collect all of my DGF's leftover meds. Many of the meds were strong narcotic pain-type medications. I wonder to this day about his motivation.

I know this is an old thread but as a buttermilk lover I wanted to offer some comments. I pay little attention to expiration dates on buttermilk. I usually keep a culture going but do restart with purchased buttermilk after a few months. Right now I am using a purchased gallon with a date of May 30 and it is still fine. It sat unused for a while while my wife was in the hospital and we weren't home to use it. Some argue for a difference in cultured and churned buttermilk and there may be a difference in the bacteria culture but taste is essentially the same. Home churned buttermilk was made from the natural culture of bacteria present in the raw milk. Pasteurization kills these bacteria thus supermarket milk on its own will not make good buttermilk. I purchase whole milk by the gallon and if not used by a reasonable time after the expiration date has passed I add a cupful or more of purchased buttermilk or my culture. I often push milk well past the expiration date by shaking the jug at every use. I was raised on raw milk. My mother always kept a Jersey cow and had a crock of milk clabbering in a warm corner at least once per milk. I was used to butter extracted from clabbered milk and it took me a long time to develop a taste for sweet cream butter, though I know some farm women had crank butter churns to make butter from cream. Mother churned with a dasher in the crock, usually flipping pages in the Sears or Wards catalog as she churned. When the butter came she centrifuged it by twirling the dasher handle (probably fashioned from a broomstick) between her palms. The whey was squeezed from the butter and it was washed several several times with water before being chilled enough for molding. The buttermilk was refrigerated, fairly thin to begin with and getting thicker with age. When it was deemed too thick it went out to a trough for the chickens. This is where the cultures may differ, purchased buttermilk doesn't thicken so quickly and the whey doesn't separate as much.