Morrisons changing milk dates from use by to best before

briskbeats

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-59928650

Thoughts?

Good to hear as it’s the fat that causes the milk to go off. So expect longer dates on skimmed over whole.

Mnoee

Having read the article, I don't think it'll change much. If it's currently third behind bread and potatoes then they're products that already have best before or sometimes even no date. The sort of people who'll chuck milk down the sink without a sniff because of a use by date will do the same with best before as they often don't know the difference. 

Browntoa

I've always bought yellow sticker reduced price milk that's technically on its last day .

It's happily sat and been used in my fridge without going off 

Soot2006

I can't remember the last time I read the best by date on milk. If it smells good, I drink it; if it smells "I thiiiink it's OK but not sure" I test it with a tongue dab ... Some people even like drinking turned milk. I don't - the clots and sourness make me want to hurl it across the room.

Mnoee

I saw elsewhere that donated food can be past its best before, but not use by, for safety reasons. This means the switch means that unsold milk can be donated to homeless charities or given away via olio or similar. That's definitely a positive.

Still think it won't make much of a difference to consumers actions, but every little helps? (wrong supermarket, I know). 

sarah1972

Never look at the date on milk, smell it. Job done. 

It’s a great move along with supermarkets not putting use by dates on a lot of fruit & veg now. 

Hopefully it will save heaps of waste from people that rely on labels and not their own common sense. 

molerat

It will still have a date on it and from what I can make out it will be the same date, just the little writing above it that will change.  Won't stop those that throw it away after that date from continuing to do so as they only read the big date.  Looking at my local supermarkets there is little milk left at the end of each day and considering most seems to be + 7 days or more, the bottle I am using was 10 days, there will be no change to wastage there.  Seems more like gesture politics to me," look what we are doing to save the planet", who can get the most greenie points without actually doing anything.

Rosa_Damascena

Mnoee said:

Having read the article, I don't think it'll change much. If it's currently third behind bread and potatoes then they're products that already have best before or sometimes even no date. The sort of people who'll chuck milk down the sink without a sniff because of a use by date will do the same with best before as they often don't know the difference. 

I'm really surprised that salad wasn't at the top of the list.

I do pay mind to the "Use By" dates for milk when selecting from supermarket shelves having been stung by milk on the turn a while ago, Staff at my local Tesco Express lack commitment to stock rotation.

elsien

I find with milk nowadays that it doesn’t turn and smell off;  the first I that it’s been open too long is when it separates in my tea. Which I generally don’t find out till I get towards the bottom of the mug.
Not nice. 

mikb

Well, I hope they also remember to change the other text on there, not just "Use By" to "Best Before" ....

"Once opened, consume within 3 days"

Given that my local store is still having bouts of "It's 4 pinters or nothing!", I can see a lot of milk still being wasted by those following the instructions. For me, a 2 pinter lasts 6-7 days.

briskbeats

The manufacturers  put once open, consume within x days/weeks on so people buy more. Have sauces in my fridge that were opened for 9 months!