M&S best before labels being removed

[Timetraveler67]

hi just wanted to share what I read in the paper today saying M&S are removing there best before labels and wonder what your thoughts are, recently I’ve had to put salad I’ve bought from them in the bin even though it was well in date, same with some fresh milk

[Lalatoot]

Best before means use when it is still ok to eat. there is no need to have ta date on food as your eye and nose should do that for you. But then i am of an age where we didn't need to be told what to do.Personally I feel the same about use by dates too but i understand why they are on meat and perishables that can cause harm.

I could give you the full rant about the nanny state telling us when it is too hot to be out, why we shouldn't eat foods with sugar but then they add chemicals and fake sugar and also why I think common sense is no longer common. But you don't deserve a rant so over and out.

[Timetraveler67 in reply to Lalatoot]

Your right we should b able to see ourselves if something isn’t fresh and I’ve never really understood why something can be off even when it’s still in date, then someone told me it’s because they don’t always put it straight in the fridge that it can sit around for ages waiting to be put out. You sound you know far more then I do, so hope to hear your rant sometime. Food doesn’t taste the same For me this last 12 months I’m having to throw so much away and I’m a person that hates waist but don’t want to risk getting sick x

[Lalatoot in reply to Timetraveler67]

Being retired means I can shop more often and reduce waste that way. Freezing is also another way of reducing waste for some things. And you need to pay attention to what you buy in the first place to ensure its in good condition. Also buy local and buy seasonal. For me its a way of life

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Timetraveler67]

we should b able to see ourselves if something isn’t fresh

It is more readily apparent if the fruit and vegetables are not so wrapped we cannot properly inspect them.

There are many reasons things can be not quite as they seem.

If the produce has been over-chilled in distribution, if can go from looking fairly OK to being a mush in very little time.

If the cooled produce is exposed to humid air, there can be much condensation. That can allow fungus to infect and make it unpleasant very quickly. But you can't see the initial infection - only when it has taken hold.

Some, such as potatoes, change in character (for example, increase in sugar levels) and can start to sprout as soon as they are no longer actively chilled.

[Sparklingsunshine in reply to helvella]

Hi

Agreed, I try to avoid pre packaged fruit and veg if possible, I'm lucky enough to have an open air market in my town centre. But there are occasions when I run out so don't have any choice.

Potatoes are a big bugbear for me. I've noticed many of the supermarkets now make the window in the packaging as small as possible so you literally can't see inside. This means that often mouldy or green potatoes are in the bag and have to be thrown, or composted in my case. We are meant to cutting down on food waste. Not adding to it.

[tattybogle in reply to Lalatoot]

i'm with with your rant Lalatoot We've evolved noses and eyes and taste buds and brains for a reason.. so we can learn to tell if something is too risky or eat or drink.

I don't even agree with safety railings round the top of castles ..... if someone is careless/ wobbly enough to fall off a castle wall , they shouldn't have gone up there.

Other than giving out Darwin Award's , i think the state should largely mind it's own business... (although i have begrudgingly accepted that compulsory motorcycle helmets and seat belts are a good idea).

Rant rant ..... and don't get me started about people who don't know how to keep themselves cool by finding some trees to sit under .......

[nellie237 in reply to tattybogle]

It's too hot to even sit under a tree where I am. 36 degrees at the moment.

I went to Tesco in the car at 9:30am. It's about a mile down the road. Sometimes I walk, but only if don't need anything heavy, because it is uphill on the way home. I can't get a bus there.

Anyway, as I was leaving I recognised an older neighbour (must be in her mid 70's) with her pull along trolley. I chased after her thinking "I can't let this lady walk home in this heat." She told me she was walking to the town centre (another mile and 1/2), and would then get the bus home. The car said it was already 30 degrees. I expect that she always walks into town on Mondays.

[Timetraveler67 in reply to nellie237]

Dear Nellie237 I know what your saying and it’s crazy because my 91 year old neighbour done more or less exactly the same! I couldn’t believe her stamina plus the ability to tolerate the heat today she took her trolly up to Tesco and back (25 min walk each way) then came home and then started gardening in the blinding heat! She doesn’t seem bothered at all by it. That was So kind of you to offer the lady a lift Earlier x

[nellie237 in reply to Timetraveler67]

I like the warm weather, but I'm not doing much today.

[Zephyrbear in reply to tattybogle]

Unfortunately, there are some of us whose senses of smell and taste are but a fleeting memory that disappeared some time ago due, in my case, to developing nasal polyps… Food now, to me is just an endless variety of tasteless textures that have no smell to entice me either. This means, the only senses I have left are sight and touch and I do get some funny looks at times when I go around picking each item up and giving it a good squeeze before putting it back if it doesn’t feel right. On the upside, I don’t ever eat more beyond ‘fullness’ because it’s something tasty… and yet, I’m still the size of a barn!

And I have a nice air conditioned workshop I can sit in in this heat 🥵set at 17degrees🥶 so I don’t need to go looking for a tree to sit under! 😉

[Timetraveler67 in reply to Zephyrbear]

Hi I’m sorry to hear about you losing taste and smell Did you have the polyps removed and that’s when it happened? I don’t enjoy eating and Nothing tastes nice anymore been worse since having deep root canal a month ago. Great your workshop is nice and cool I’ve hung wet towels at my window but can’t get temp down past 30 in my living room I’m too much baby to attempt to go out until late evening when it cools down a bit

[Zephyrbear in reply to Timetraveler67]

No, I didn’t have them removed, but my daughter had hers done. Not a very nice procedure and she never recovered her senses either. Mine are just controlled by Flixonase drops which allow me to breathe through my nose, but not taste or smell.

[jimh111]

Sometimes the 'use by' dates are a bit silly. This example was given on a radio comedy show if I remember correctly. A bottle of water was labelled as being filtered through the hills for 200,000 years and had a use by date in a few week's time. Amazing that they can determine use by to within a few days over such a long period.

My favourite bargain are those 'ripen at home' peaches. You have to let them ripen for a few days before you can eat them but if you buy the cheap short dated ones they are ready to eat as soon as you get home!

[serenfach]

I try not to buy "ripen at home" as the fruit is programmed to go from rock hard to mouldy squish in one tenth of a second, when it is not being watched.

My bugbear is "baby potatoes". People think they are buying new potatoes when in fact they are buying the small potatoes that go through the riddle and used to go for animal feed. You cannot really peel them, and I dont like eating the skins on the potato.

On a better note, my new potatoes are just about ready in the garden!

[Timetraveler67 in reply to serenfach]

I didn’t know that about potatoes when I read your growing your own I felt so happy your doing this, I don’t have a garden but would if I did. Someone gave me 2 tomato plants last year and I grew them in a pot outside my front door it felt very rewarding when I saw the little tomato’s ready to be picked x

[humanbean]

I don't think all fruits and vegetables can be treated the same. I'm happy to buy onions without a best before date as long as I can see the actual onions. So change the design of the plastic bags and stop hiding the contents. Better still, sell more produce with no plastic bags or coverings at all.

Cucumber can turn to mush inside it's plastic cover and you can't always tell until you take the plastic off. Lettuce can also sometimes become slimy without it being very obvious.

Avocados - they end up hard as a rock or over ripe - it is rare to get one that is just right.

What about kiwi fruits? They can be slimy the day after they are bought. Ditto with raspberries and strawberries.

So, for me it depends on which fruit and vegetables I wanted to buy on whether the best before date (or the lack of one) will affect my shopping habits.