Best By Date Policy

Freshness of candy is important. Our policy is that 30 days prior to the best by date is a reasonable window for ensuring freshness of products shipped to customers without any additional notification. Once products fall within that 30 day freshness window, we post the best by date on the website to be transparent so that customers are aware, and can make informed decisions whether that particular best by date will work for their intended use of the candy. If there are concerns about freshness, we encourage customers to contact us regarding best by dates on the products they order. We provide these four options to contact us with questions:

• 1. Call us at 800-875-2409 Mon - Fri. between 9am - 5pm Eastern time
• 2. Email us at sweets@naturalcandystore.com
• 3. Submit a question by filling out the contact form
• 4. Submit a question or comment in the "Special Instructions" area on the Shipping Information page during checkout.

We respond promptly to best by date question(s), including looking at labels of products in inventory if necessary. If requested, we can modify an order for a customer before it is shipped if best buy dates will not work for their specific needs. If shipped prior to the best by date, a product may be delivered after its best by date. However, in those instances, notification of the best by date would have been made on the website prior to purchase and the customer would have been informed via the product page about the lapsing best by date. We manage inventory freshness closely to help ensure the quality of the candy shipped to customers. Once a product reaches its best by date, our practice is to remove it from inventory, and it is no longer available for purchase.

Best by dates on candy are intended to indicate freshness, not "food safety".

We often get questions about the "safety" of candy for consumption after the best by date. Sugar is a natural preservative with a very long shelf life. Candy is safe to consume after the best by date has passed so long as no indication of the product being spoiled. Many candymakers set their best by dates to be shorter in duration than what may be necessary as they wish to ensure that their products are consumed when at optimum freshness. Here is what the USDA says about best by dates:

"Manufacturers provide dating to help consumers and retailers decide when food is of best quality. A "Best if Used By/Before" date indicates when a product will be of best flavor or quality. It is not a purchase or safety date."

Read more about what the USDA says about Food Product Dating HERE.

Of course, you may place orders at any time at NaturalCandyStore.com! And you can find all of our "Best By Date" candy listed under our Super Deals section.