Sell-By, Use-By and Best-Before.

 

 


It has been reported widely in the media that consumers are confused by the three terms ‘sell-by’, ‘best before’ and ‘use-by’, used in food labelling.

Just in case any of you are in the confused group, here’s a brief rundown.


Sell-by dates don’t matter a bit to the consumer. They were introduced for stock control in Marks and Spencer’s warehouses in the 1950s and then rolled out to the shelves in the 1970s.


The best-before date, sometimes shown as BBE (best before end), is about quality and not safety, so is usually applied to foods that have been preserved including frozen, dried, tinned foods, pickles and jams and some hard cheeses.

Best-before dates were first introduced, also by M&S, in the 1990s as an indicator of the quality of their food. Using produce by the best before date guarantees the optimum flavour, texture and appearance of the food. This means that there is no need to get rid of food that has passed its best-before date, it’s entirely safe, but the longer you leave it beyond the BB/ BBE date, the less appetising it will be as it deteriorates. However, most foods are still in perfect condition for about three weeks beyond the BBE date. Some retailers are currently exploring the idea of doing away with best-before date labelling in an attempt to reduce food waste.           

Liz Truss revealed that she regularly eats food that is past its 'best before' date. Truss said that said she applies the ‘sniff test’ to food before deciding whether to bin it or eat it. ‘I will just see if it smells OK and eat it!  (Oh Liz! That is a disgrace!)

It’s worth noting that the best before date will only be a useful guide if the food is stored properly.

 

Use-by is by far the most important of the date labels to heed.

The history of the introduction of use-by dates is a bit surprising. Al Capone, the famous Chicago gangster, was responsible for the introduction of use-by dates for milk, supposedly after a family member became ill after consuming milk that had gone off. The Capones were involved in the Illinois/Wisconsin dairy industry 1930s and acquired all the machines for printing information onto milk bottles. There is a long story involving kidnapping and a ransom which is a little more believable than the purely altruistic act.

The day Al Capone allegedly invented expiration dates in milk bottles (culturacolectiva.com)

According to NHS guidelines, the use-by date means food must be eaten by that time, otherwise it can make you unwell. Food that is past this date should be discarded ‘Use-by’ labelling should only be applied to foods which are highly perishable and are likely to pose a danger to health after a short period. Use-by date labels are usually found on chilled meat and fish, ready-to-eat salads, prepared meals and dairy products because they are ideal environments for bacterial growth.

While use-by dates are important for avoiding food poisoning, there are foods which can be eaten safely after their use-by date has passed. Very sweet products like jams, honey, fruit cake and fudge can be eaten after their use by dates as using large amounts of sugar preserves food effectively. Fermented food such as sauerkraut and kimchi are safe, as are foods which have been preserved through salting, curing or drying. Eggs which can still be used in baking or hard-boiled long after their use-by but they shouldn’t be eaten soft. Hard cheeses, such as cheddar and parmesan are also safe after their use-by dates, any mouldy bits can be removed, this also applies to bread. The same, however, is not true of soft cheeses like brie or camembert, which can harbour salmonella.

The Food Standards Agency states that food can be cooked and eaten until midnight on the use-by date but not after. I wonder what would happen at one minute past midnight…



Comments

  1. JeanieOctober 31, 2022 at 3:59 PM

    I might wait for one hour, until midnight, and try. Or maybe not , cos I might die!

    ReplyDelete

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