What is the difference between ‘use by’ and ‘best before’ date marks on food?
‘Use by’ dates appear on foods that can go off within a few days e.g. meat products, ready-prepared salads, dairy products and chilled convenience meals. Do not use any food past this date as it could put your health at risk. It is an offence for shops to sell food past its use by date. For the use by date to be a valid guide, you must follow the storage instructions carefully. As a general rule, eat it, cook it, freeze it before the use by date or else throw the food out. ‘Best before’ dates appear on a wide range of frozen, dried, canned and other foods, which can safely be kept for a long time. When the date is reached it doesn’t mean that the food is dangerous, but it may no longer be at its best. It is not an offence for shops to sell food past its best before date. Other dates can appear on food such as ‘display until’. These dates are used by shops in stock control and are guides for shop staff not customers.
