Supermarket giant Morrisons may have caused a stir when it replaced the use by date on its bottles of milk with a best before date, but its move last year triggered the start of a shift on selected products from other retailers.
Sainsbury's, Tesco, Aldi and the Co-op are among the grocery chains scrapping use-by dates or dairy products and best-before dates on some fruit and veg lines, in a bid to reduce the 26,082 tonnes of food which is thought to be wasted in the UK every day.
While customers were outraged at being told by Morrisons to try 'a sniff test' to make sure the milk was still fresh before they used it, Tesco's announcement last month that it was switching to best-before dates on more than 30 yoghurt products was partly in response to figures by environmental charity Wrap, which found that 54,000 tonnes of yoghurt are wasted each year. Half of the yoghurts thrown away are unopened because they had gone 'out-of-date'.
Read more: Air fryer, halogen or oven - find out the cheapest way to cook your Sunday roast
As more retailers make the move to let consumers use their own judgement on whether to eat a product or not, food safety is very importance and The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has said it is concerned about people eating food past its use-by date.
June 7, is World Food Safety Day, which was launched to raise awareness of handling, cooking, and storage of food to prevent food-borne illnesses. And as shoppers often confuse best-before and use-by dates, we decided to take a look at the important difference between the two and consider what you can safely eat after its best-before date.
Use-by dates are about SAFETY
This is the most important date to remember. You can eat food until and on the use-by date but not after. You will see use-by dates on food that goes off quickly, such as meat products or ready-to-eat salads.
Best before dates are about QUALITY
The best-before date, sometimes shown as BBE (best before end), is about quality and not safety. The food will be safe to eat after this date but may not be at its best. Its flavour and texture might not be as good. Best-before dates appear on a wide range of foods including frozen foods, dried foods and tinned foods.
So what is safe to eat once it's gone past its best-before date?
Milk and yoghurt
Some supermarkets have already switched the use by to best before dates on some diary products, as you can certainly tell when milk has gone off. Wrap reckons we pour 490million pints of milk away each year, but as long as it looks, smells and tastes OK, milk is fine to consume after its best before date. Just make sure it doesn't smell or taste sour, or have a lumpy texture.
Likewise, if stored unopened and correctly in your fridge, yoghurt can keep for weeks after its best before. This is because of the acid in the product, which helps keep bacteria at bay.
Cheese
It is perfectly OK cut away any small amounts of mould and safely eat the rest, as long as it's mould-free.. Hard cheeses like Cheddar or Parmesan are safe to eat after the best before date has passed. Avoid this for soft cheeses as mould can travel more quickly through them.
Bread
It's fairly simple to see whether bread is off, as it will often grow mould. Storing in the fridge can help it keep for up to two weeks after its best before date. Freezing it (before its use-by) can also help, and toasting it from frozen doesn't take much longer.
Dried pasta and rice
Regardless of what it says on the packet, dried pasta can keep for up to three years. All you need to do is make sure it's stored in an air tight container or packaging. Dry white rice can last for years like pasta if stored in an airtight container, but brown rice doesn't contain the same preservatives, so better play safe.
Biscuits and cereals
According to food charity Food Cycle, biscuits and cereals can go as long as six months over their best-before date, although taste to make sure it's not stale before you pour out a big bowlful.
Fruits and vegetables
If they look, smell and taste fine, fruit and veg is safe to eat. For soft fruit like strawberries or grapes, remove any mouldy or squishy fruit from the punnet as it can quickly turn the others.
Eggs
A shocking 720 million eggs are thrown away each year, but you can get an extra three weeks of life from your eggs if you keep them in the fridge. There's no mistaking an egg that's gone off, so if it smells OK, crack on.
Canned goods
Due to the sterilisation process of packaging food into tins, they can be eaten for years afterwards.
Honey
Sugary crystals do not mean your honey's gone off. Just place the jar into some boiling water and it will revert to its usual state.
Sugar
Sugar is a preservative and can keep indefinitely if stored in an airtight container.
Do you take any notice of best-before or use-by dates? Join in the conversation below
Jams
Keep an eye for mould growing on the surface - if there's none you're good to go.
Vinegar and soy sauce
Vinegar is another preservative and will last long after its best before and soy sauce will keep because of its salt content.
Read more:
- Households could save cash by taking a look at their fridge-freezer according to Which? consumer experts
Food price cap may be on the way as Rishi Sunak puts pressure on supermarkets
- Energy saving tips that will save you money - and others which are a waste of time
- Tumble driers, radiators and heated airers: Work out the best way to get your laundry dry amid the energy crisis
