Cadburys Shop at Outlet Village - out of date stock
taxiphil
Posts: 1,980 Forumite
On a trip to Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet yesterday, I popped into the Cadburys Factory Shop and noticed that the majority of stock on sale was past its Best Before date.
Most things on sale had a Best Before date of February 2006, but I was particularly concerned that the Dairy Milk with Mint Chips bars had a Best Before date of December 2005!
Now, I know it's not illegal to sell food that's past its Best Before date, and to be fair there were disclaimers on the shelf warning customers of this, but does anyone agree with me that selling a chocolate bar over four months past its Best Before date is really pushing it too far?
To add insult to injury they weren't incredibly cheap at 20p each (5 for £1). I'd expect a more generous discount if they expect me to eat a stale-tasting chocolate bar.
I've seen foods on sale in places like Home Bargains which are maybe a few weeks past their Best Before date, or sometimes up to two months at the very most, but I've never seen anything on this scale before.
It now seems obvious that Cadburys have only set up these Factory Shops so they can wring some money out of stock which is so old that no other retailer will touch it with a bargepole. I suppose they used to throw this stock in a landfill site before someone had the brainwave of flogging it direct to the public under the pretence that it's a bargain!
I think this sort of practice goes against the spirit of these so-called "Factory Shops", as it's been a very long time since any of that chocolate saw the inside of a factory.
Most things on sale had a Best Before date of February 2006, but I was particularly concerned that the Dairy Milk with Mint Chips bars had a Best Before date of December 2005!
Now, I know it's not illegal to sell food that's past its Best Before date, and to be fair there were disclaimers on the shelf warning customers of this, but does anyone agree with me that selling a chocolate bar over four months past its Best Before date is really pushing it too far?
To add insult to injury they weren't incredibly cheap at 20p each (5 for £1). I'd expect a more generous discount if they expect me to eat a stale-tasting chocolate bar.
I've seen foods on sale in places like Home Bargains which are maybe a few weeks past their Best Before date, or sometimes up to two months at the very most, but I've never seen anything on this scale before.
It now seems obvious that Cadburys have only set up these Factory Shops so they can wring some money out of stock which is so old that no other retailer will touch it with a bargepole. I suppose they used to throw this stock in a landfill site before someone had the brainwave of flogging it direct to the public under the pretence that it's a bargain!
I think this sort of practice goes against the spirit of these so-called "Factory Shops", as it's been a very long time since any of that chocolate saw the inside of a factory.
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Comments
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I'd rather see it sold then filling landfill sites, not sure on the pricing as I don't think I know the price of chocolate bars anymore as 5 for a £1 doesn't seem particulary cheap for factory shops in date chocolate, I must be so behind the times!0
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I've eaten chocolate months past the Best Before date and it's tasted fine. Unless the quality of the chocolate bar is significantly reduced, I don't see the problem. Best Before dates can often be far too cautious, depending on how the goods have been stored in the meantime means that they can last much longer.0
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taxiphil wrote:On a trip to Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet yesterday, I popped into the Cadburys Factory Shop and noticed that the majority of stock on sale was past its Best Before date.
Most things on sale had a Best Before date of February 2006, but I was particularly concerned that the Dairy Milk with Mint Chips bars had a Best Before date of December 2005!
Now, I know it's not illegal to sell food that's past its Best Before date, and to be fair there were disclaimers on the shelf warning customers of this, but does anyone agree with me that selling a chocolate bar over four months past its Best Before date is really pushing it too far?
To add insult to injury they weren't incredibly cheap at 20p each (5 for £1). I'd expect a more generous discount if they expect me to eat a stale-tasting chocolate bar.
I've seen foods on sale in places like Home Bargains which are maybe a few weeks past their Best Before date, or sometimes up to two months at the very most, but I've never seen anything on this scale before.
It now seems obvious that Cadburys have only set up these Factory Shops so they can wring some money out of stock which is so old that no other retailer will touch it with a bargepole. I suppose they used to throw this stock in a landfill site before someone had the brainwave of flogging it direct to the public under the pretence that it's a bargain!
I think this sort of practice goes against the spirit of these so-called "Factory Shops", as it's been a very long time since any of that chocolate saw the inside of a factory.
I really don't see the problem here - you don't have to buy it! A relative of mine works at cadbury and has access to their employee shop. A high percentage of the chocolate on sale in there is out of date sometimes by months and months and it tastes absolutely fine - I would hardly think a chocolate bar dated December 05 would taste stale. Its is only a best before date anyway, not a use by date.
I would fully expect a cadbury factory shop to be selling some out of date chocolate - and would probably buy it!0 -
I also don't see a problem. It is not as though the shop was selling the chocolate without warning customers of the best before date. As long as notices were up then surely it is up to the individual as to whether they then wish to go ahead and purchase or not?
Chocolate is one of those things that doesn't really go off for ages. I've eaten year old chocolate before now and it's been absolutely fine, so I wouldn't worry about it.0 -
I wouldn't worry about a few months out of date on chocolate .. I once tried some that was several years out of date .. tasted fine but was a bit white looking. I remember a while back hearing a news story about someone who had found some chocolate belonging to somebody really famous from history (Nelson is coming to mind but it may not have been him) and they actually tried a bit of it .. said it was OK.
IvanPast caring about first world problems.0 -
It just seems very contradictory to me. If it doesn't deteriorate in taste or in terms of food safety, why not extend the Best Before date by six months when it is printed on to the pack? They can't have it both ways.
I just feel that four months past the BB is very old and if this is deemed acceptable practice, where do we draw the line? Five months? Six months? Seven? Doesn't it make a mockery of having Best Before dates in the first place?0 -
I remember seeing a thing on TV about best before dates.
Unless its meat/poultry/fish produce - then its fine to eat it months after the best before dates !
Unless it has a use by date which is a different thing altogether, in this case, it should be disgarded !Debt Free Jan 2010!(Be happy) the state of your life is nothing more than the state of your mind! X:j0 -
Best before dates are fairly meaningless. You are best doing your own checks before eating - I.e. does it look OK and does it smell OK - if so, you're probably OK to eat it.
Yes, it does make a mockery, but that is not the manufacturer's fault - like everything else in good old UK, there are rules and regulations, and somewhere, some faceless official will have made an official decision about safe lifetimes which everyone has to follow (like sheep).
But there again, it does safeguard the general public. I remember, many many years ago before BB dates whilst I was still at school. Our family had a corner shop and one year we ordered far too many easter eggs and had loads left over - we just put them away for the following year!! When Easter came round again, we opened a few, checked they looked and smelled OK and sold them. Looking back, I cringe, but no-one came to harm - I don't think we really gave it much thought. In some ways, perhaps BB dates are a good idea!!!0 -
BB dates are a legal requirement, if companies could get round them and extend the date, they would.(Use by dates are illegal to sell past)
All a best BB date shows is a date at which the food is expected to start declining in quality, rather tahn being in-edible.I no longer work in Council Tax Recovery but instead work as a specialist Council Tax paralegal assisting landlords and Council Tax payers with council tax disputes and valuation tribunals. My views are my own reading of the law and you should always check with the local authority in question.0 -
Is that not what every retailer ,whatever product they sell uses factory shops for .taxiphil wrote:
It now seems obvious that Cadburys have only set up these Factory Shops so they can wring some money out of stock which is so old that no other retailer will touch it with a bargepole. I suppose they used to throw this stock in a landfill site before someone had the brainwave of flogging it direct to the public under the pretence that it's a bargain!
I.
Lighten up0
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