Best Before Dates & Use By Dates

[Georgebulldog]

Strange question I know but I've noticed that all the food I buy doesn't have use by dates, just "best before" does this replace the "Use by" we had in the UK?

I always knew where I was with use by & never pushed it, now I'm thinking I'm eating stuff I should have thrown away

[JandM]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/stor...0487730&pnum=2

Looks as if it's a bit less regulated than in the UK.

[Georgebulldog]

Thanks for that, a bit worrying but I'm assuming from reading that as long as I eat it before the best before then I'll be OK, I'm almost 6 months pregnant so being extra carefull. Think I'll talk to the midwife on Wednesday.
Time they bought better practice, at least in the UK I knew where I was

[zardell]

I was once told by a manager from Asda's (a UK supermarket for those who don't know) that a 'use by' date is exactly what it says - to be used/consumed by that date.

A 'best before' date however can be used/consumed up to 6 months or more after it's expiry date.

Unless of course, you know different?

Julie

xx

[suzer]

I was once told by a manager from Asda's (a UK supermarket for those who don't know) that a 'use by' date is exactly what it says - to be used/consumed by that date.

A 'best before' date however can be used/consumed up to 6 months or more after it's expiry date.

Unless of course, you know different?

Julie

xx

definitely not 6 months after! a few days, at most. and both are pretty much the same.

[Jo Jo]

Here's what the New Zealand Food Safety Authority says:

Date marks and storage instructions

A date mark indicates the end of a food product’s shelf life, or when it may start to deteriorate. Most packaged foods with a shelf life of up to two years require a date mark, except for individual portions of ice cream, or for food products in small packages (such as chewing gum) where there is no food safety concern.

What the different date marks mean

The ‘Use By’ date indicates how long your food should keep safely if the storage instructions are followed. You should not buy or consume food when the ‘Use By’ date has expired and it is illegal to sell food with an expired ‘Use By’ date.

The ‘Best Before’ date indicates when the quality of the product may begin to change. It is not a safety issue. Food can be sold beyond its ‘Best Before’ date provided it is still fit for consumption.

The ‘Baked On/Baked For’ dates are used on bread products with a shelf life of less than seven days.

Safety-related storage instructions are required on certain food products in conjunction with date marks to guide your handling of the food so that its safety or quality isn’t jeopardised before the date mark expires. Pathogens such as Salmonella, Campylobacter and Listeria can grow to levels that may cause illness if your food is not stored correctly. These instructions may also indicate how to store the food once the package is opened (eg, ‘Refrigerate after opening’).

http://www.nzfsa.govt.nz/consumers/f...g-food-labels/

[zardell]

definitely not 6 months after!

Yes, I should have said that it depends what products we are relating to, but I do agree with JoJo's post in the respect that I believe that the 'use by' and the 'best before' dates are 2 different things.

Maybe it varies from country to country??

Julie

xx

[Georgebulldog]

That's all great
I don't think I made myself very clear, pregnancy brain turned to mush, I've noticed nothing with Use By Dates over here just best before
& the other thing is I'm used to the likes of sour cream saying "once opened consume with ** days" but nothing out here just "Best Before" not even "use by"
So maybe I should stick with what I know & use the best before as use by & not consume after that date?
Am I making sense yet?

[zardell]

Am I making sense yet?

Absolutely....

Julie

xx

[benandclare]

I got a 1.2 Kg Puhoi Mahu blue cheese from work with a best before of Jan 9 2008 and we've eaten half of it and it's getting yummier by the day