To determine the expiration date of a 7up can, you need to locate and interpret the manufacture date printed on the can.
Locating the Date
- The date is typically stamped on the bottom of the can.
- It's presented in a MM DDD Y format. This means:
- MM: Represents the month (e.g., 01 for January, 12 for December).
- DDD: Represents the day of the year (e.g., 001 for January 1st, 365 for December 31st).
- Y: Represents the last digit of the year (e.g., 1 for 2021, 2 for 2022).
Calculating the Expiration
Once you've found the manufacture date, the shelf life of 7up needs to be taken into account:
- Regular 7up sodas: Generally have a shelf life of 9 months from the manufacture date.
- Diet 7up sodas: Typically have a shorter shelf life of 3 months from the manufacture date.
Example:
Let's say a can has a manufacture date stamp of 03 250 3.
- Date Interpretation: This indicates March 250th day in the year ending with 3, i.e. 2023. The 250th day of the year would be around Septemeber 7th (for a non leap year). This means the manufacture date is approximately September 7th, 2023.
- Expiration Calculation:
- If it's a regular 7up, the expiration date would be approximately June 7th, 2024 (9 months after September 7th, 2023).
- If it's a diet 7up, the expiration date would be approximately December 7th, 2023 (3 months after September 7th, 2023).
Key Takeaways:
- Always check the bottom of the can for the manufacture date.
- Use the MM DDD Y format to interpret the manufacture date correctly.
- Remember the different shelf lives for regular and diet sodas.
By following these steps, you can effectively determine the expiration date of your 7up cans.
