BEST-BEFORE DATES are there to tell customers when the food they’re about to eat is past its best – but they might be pointless for some foods.
That’s what Waitrose is pointing out as it removes best-before dates from packaged fruit and vegetables.
The Guardian reports that nearly 500 fresh food products – like lettuce, cucumber and peppers – won’t be given such a date, so that consumers can use their own judgement about when the food has gone off. The hope is it will in turn prevent food waste, so people don’t throw out perfectly good fresh fruit and veg just because the packaging gives a specific date.
Marks and Spencer has already removed best-before dates on hundreds of fruit and vegetable products.
While ‘best before’ dates indicate there’s some leeway with eating the item, ‘use by’ dates are stricter and indicate the product shouldn’t be eaten past the indicated time.
What about you: Do you always obey best-before dates?
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