Love Food Hate Waste - Tips
We have put together 6 useful tips that will help you get the most out of the food you buy.
Tip 2: Know your labels
Check the date
Most of us end up throwing away food because we haven't got round to eating it before the 'use by' date. It's a good idea to stay on top of this by keeping an eye on the food in your fridge and knowing when it is about to reach that date.
Below is an easy reference guide to the different date labels we use.
At M&S we use five types of codes to label our food.
In each case where you see the Display until label, this is not required by law, but we use it in our stores to inform staff how long food should be left on the shelves to maintain the highest quality standards.
1: Display until / Use by
A Display until / Use By label is used for food which is highly perishable and has a short life, such as meat, fish or ready meals. It is generally used for food that requires refrigeration, although this will be specified on the label. Do not eat food after the end of the Use By date. Always check the labelling as many of these products can be frozen.
2: Display until / Best before
A Display until / Best before label is generally used for food like bread or cakes. The date on the label refers to the time an item will remain in optimum condition - after the best before date the product may start to deteriorate in quality and flavour. For food that keeps for less than 3 months, this Best Before date will be an exact day of the month, (e.g. 15 September).
3: Display until end / Best before end
A Display until - end / Best before - end label is used for food that keeps for 18 months from its production date or longer, and tends to be frozen products. These labels use only the month and year the products are in date for, (e.g. Aug 09), and the products will stay in good condition until the end of the specified month.
4: Best before end
This is generally used for grocery items that keep for 6 months or more, e.g. canned food, cereals and coffee and the date is indicated by the month and year, e.g. Jun 2009. The date on the label refers to the time an item will remain in optimum condition - after the best before end date the product may start to deteriorate in quality and flavour.
5: Display until
The Display until label on its own is used on basic produce, such as whole tomatoes and potatoes, for example, and the date is indicated by the day and month, e.g. 14 Sep. This is for the use of M&S store staff to ensure the stock on the shelves is kept at the highest possible quality.
For further information on date labels, visit:
Information and statistics provided by WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme).
