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Print pantry labels with a code and date
Make a sheet of labels with a food name, a short code, a packed date, a best-by date, and a Code 128 barcode of the code.
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What to put on the label
Two things need to be readable from arm’s length: what the container is, and the date you want to use it by. A short code links the container to a list, so the label does not have to carry every detail.
The code generator uses three letters and skips I and O, so a handwritten copy is harder to mix up. You can type your own code instead, including a two-word code such as oak-kelp. The bars are Code 128 of that code only. The dates stay as text, so a later scan still yields a short code rather than a long string.
Printing hides the rest of this page and lays the copies out in two or three columns on the paper your printer already uses.
How to print a sheet
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Step 1
Name the food and set the dates
Packed is the day it went into the container. Best by is when you want it eaten, not a guess at food safety law.
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Step 2
Keep or replace the code
Use New code if this container needs its own code. Reuse a code only when the labels are copies of the same batch.
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Step 3
Print
Choose copies and columns, check the preview, then print. Cut on the dashed lines.
Label questions
Will this barcode open my stockpile?
It encodes the code you printed. Prepparia’s own labels use a QR code that opens that code in the app. This sheet is the paper version you can use before you have an account.
What if the date format looks wrong?
The date fields use the format your browser expects. The printed text uses the year-month-day value so it does not swap day and month.
Can I label tins I am not decanting?
Yes. A lid only needs the best-by date and a code. The name still helps when several tins look the same from above.
Related
Prepparia prints the same kind of short code and keeps the list on the device.