104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
SB2072
 
Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Steve Stadelman
 
SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
410 ILCS 620/11.5
    Amends the Illinois Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. Provides that the Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the Department of Public Health, shall, on or before July 1, 2027, adopt rules requiring food product labels to contain information regarding the quality date of a product and the safety date of a product. Provides for exceptions for eggs, beer and other malt beverages, and as limited by federal law. Provides for a civil penalty of $100.


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A BILL FOR
 
SB2072LRB104 07459 BDA 17500 b

1    AN ACT concerning health.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act is 
5amended by changing Section 11.5 as follows:
 
6    (410 ILCS 620/11.5)
7    Sec. 11.5. Standardization of food labeling.
8    (a) As used in this Section:
9    "Quality date" means a date on a label affixed to the 
10packaging or a container of food that communicates to 
11consumers the date after which the food quality may begin to 
12deteriorate but the food may still be acceptable for 
13consumption.
14    "Safety date" means a date on a label affixed to the 
15packaging or container of food that communicates to consumers 
16that the food should be consumed or frozen, if appropriate, by 
17the date listed on the package that applies to perishable 
18products with potential safety implications over time.
19    "Sell by date" means a date on a label affixed to the 
20packaging or container of food that is intended to communicate 
21primarily to a distributor or retailer for purposes of stock 
22rotation and is not a quality date or a safety date.
23    (b) The Department of Agriculture, in consultation with 
 
 
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1the Department of Public Health, shall, on or before July 1, 
22024, publish information to encourage food manufacturers, 
3processors, and retailers responsible for the labeling of food 
4products to voluntarily use the following uniform terms on 
5food product labels to communicate quality dates and safety 
6dates:
7        (1) "BEST if Used by" or "BEST if Used or Frozen by" to 
8    indicate the quality date of a product; and
9        (2) "USE by" or "USE by or Freeze by" to indicate the 
10    safety date of a product.
11    The Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the 
12Department of Public Health, shall, on or before July 1, 2027, 
13adopt rules requiring food product labels to contain the 
14information detailed in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this 
15subsection (b). The Department of Agriculture shall provide 
16exceptions for eggs, beer and other malt beverages, and as 
17limited by federal law. A violation of any rule adopted under 
18this subsection shall be punishable by a civil penalty of $100 
19per violation. 
20    (c) The Department of Agriculture shall promote the 
21consistent use of the terms specified pursuant to subsection 
22(b) in the course of its existing interactions with food 
23manufacturers, processors, and retailers.
24    (d) In the process of implementing subsection (b), the 
25Department shall encourage food distributors and retailers to 
26develop alternatives to consumer-facing "sell by" dates.
 
 
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1    (e) The Department may accept nonstate funds from public 
2and private sources to educate consumers about the meaning of 
3the quality dates and safety dates specified in this Section. 
4Funds accepted by the Department pursuant to this subsection 
5shall be deposited into the Food and Drug Safety Fund.
6(Source: P.A. 103-208, eff. 1-1-24.)