#ThriftyThursday – Do you take notice of the best before and use by dates?

February 5, 2015 By Cassandra
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best before dates

The amount of times I’ve seen questions in various online forums recently about whether or not something is safe to eat has really got me thinking lately about Best Before and Use By dates.

It drives me mad when someone answers ‘sniff it and see’ to a question about whether out of date chicken is OK to eat because I would never serve food that’s past it’s use by date to anyone. I know I’m probably in the minority and most people would be OK with it as long as it looks and smells OK but I just couldn’t!

I still buy food in the reduced section at the supermarket though, I just freeze anything that is about to go past it’s use by date and defrost it when we’re ready to eat it.

I’ve tried to find a good explanation of the difference between Use By dates and Best Before dates and the best one I’ve found is here on the NHS website. Basically though, if a food has a use by date on it then it should not be eaten even if it looks and smells fine because there is still a chance that it could make you ill. This is why I’d never give my family food after the Use By date – I wouldn’t take any chances with their health.

A Best Before date is different though as it’s all about the quality of the food and they won’t make you ill if you eat them after the date given. After the Best Before date, the food may start to lose it’s flavour or texture. I’m happy to use best before dates on most things but I try to stick to it with things like herbs and spices as I’m using them to flavour food so I want them to be as flavourful as possible.

What do you think – do you stick to the dates or do you just sniff it and see?

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Comments (19)

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allyouneedisloveandcake 42p · 530 weeks ago

I often use things that have gone past their best before, use by is slightly different though, especially with poultry. I wouldn't risk it.

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caroljs · 530 weeks ago

I used to work in food manufacturing and have seen the tests done on fresh food. Just because you can't see or smell something doesn't mean that it's not covered in harmful bacteria. Ultimately companies want you to have as long as life as possible without risking your health. Loads of tests are done before they set a use by date on a product. I don't risk it on meat products but I'm ok with fruit and veg. Best before is a quality thing. By law they have to have one on it,

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alex · 530 weeks ago

i ate a some pork chops on the 4th february that had gone out of date on the 26th of jan but had just been sitting in the fridge.. tasted great though and i didnt feel ill in the slightest :)

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jbmumofone 39p · 530 weeks ago

We often allow a few days leeway on best before dates but I don't tend to argue with the 'use-by' dates. Too risky.

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Claire · 530 weeks ago

I think you have hit the nail on the head here Cass. I buy a LOT of yellow sticker food but anything that has a use by date goes in the freezer and is pulled out to defrost over night ready to be cooked that evening. Best before is a completely different story and I have been known to use best before items that are up to a year out of date. It's important people learn the difference between use by and best before because so many people think they are one and the same thing when in fact they are completely different.

Much Love Claire from frugal living xxx

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Ann-Marie · 530 weeks ago

Best before dates are usually just that the product won`t be `at its best` after that date.
It depends what it is but I`ve had loads of stuff past its best before date from online food people Approved Food and its all been fine and best of all - really cheap! Very handy especially with hungry kids!
Use by is a whole different ball game though.
This is a `safe to eat` issue on dairy, meat, fish, milk, eggs etc and should really be adhered to as it could lead to a bad tummy or even food poisoning. Not really worth the risk.

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bavariansojourn 78p · 530 weeks ago

Things like meat I don't usually take that much of a risk on, but everything else, if it tastes OK, it gets eaten! The Bavarian's don't tend to do big shops like us, they tend to go every day and so they don't usually have this problem... :D

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marisworld 71p · 530 weeks ago

Oh yes, I have used stuff past it's date but I do rely on my smell and sight to judge the product. Fortunately I have never poisoned my family till now so I am hoping my sense of judgement is spot on

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stressymummy1 44p · 530 weeks ago

I am quite funny about it too. I am happy to eat some things that are past their best before and I'm sure that some of my tinned foods and herbs and spices are well past that but yes meat is something that I would never use after the use by date as like you I wouldn't want to take the risk

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eatlikeULoveUrself · 530 weeks ago

I work in food safety and in general, I avoid eating past the use by date and will after the best before but I tend to use my knowledge about microbiology and likely concerns. I will cook with ingredients which can be eaten raw in certain circumstances as well (but not everything is made safe by cooking). As a rule of thumb though I wouldn't feed anything past either date to someone in a vulnerable group, e.g. anyone under 5, over 55, immunocompromised (e.g. diabetic, chronically ill) or pregnant.

One thing to understand is smell tells you nothing. Smell only indicates spoilage organisms and you can get 'off' smells with MAP packs (where the air is replaced with other gasses to preserve life) which are nothing to do with quality or safety.

Whenever I read something saying "My Mum used to do this and we were fine", no she didn't. We have different (weaker) immune systems now for many reasons and also food is produced differently. Generally I would freeze if you're not going to eat it within date unless you know what you're doing.

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@hooker1uk · 530 weeks ago

The use by date is a a concern in my eyes as many foodstuffs expire long before this due to the way it's been prepared and stored before being put out on the shelves. (well a certain supermarkets meat is a prime example, I won't mention names)

I do over the best before quite a lot, as long as it's safe to eat it's no concern. possibly why certain sites thrive selling use by expired foods.

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hpmcq 54p · 530 weeks ago

use by dates and best before dates always come up in our house, Mr HPMcQ is obsessed with both wheres as i'm a little more "flexible" on the best before dates!

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dorkymum 34p · 530 weeks ago

Oh that's interesting. I'm much more inclined to use something that's past it's date if it's a dry product - cereals or grains, but much less likely to if it's meat. I tend to trust what the date says on them! With fruit and veg I do use the sniff test, and if if fruit has gone a bit soft I'll use it to bake with or make a smoothie.

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romanianmuminlondon 38p · 530 weeks ago

Never just sniff and see...As someone that gets ill pretty fast and has daughters that do the same from food...sometimes i don't use things even if they still have a day to go if i don't like the look of it...anyway great post!

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mammasaurus 71p · 529 weeks ago

I check the use by dates religiously I must admit, having one had such bad food poisoning that I had a weeks spell in hospital - it's made me rather over-cautious!

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Chris · 529 weeks ago

I started cooking for my family before use by dates were even thought of and I never use them I go by the look of food and how long and where I have stored it. At one time I had no fridge or freezer [too expensive] I have both now and usually freeze food I am not about to use but cheese is usually only just about ripe when the use by date is up. I think each person should get a feel for food and ingredients and be taught how to handle it at school. This is education for life. I have not poisoned anybody yet

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Mummy's Blog · 529 weeks ago

I will eat vegetables or bread if they're out of date and look OK, but never meat, I am hugely paranoid about that and would never risk it!

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chrissie curtis · 529 weeks ago

Some things we eat a day or two past use by, I avoid meats though! Although my dad will eat anything that look or smells fine as use by dates are "man made" as he says and they never used to exist and he did fine. I also buy and freeze certain things but others like Vegetables I use until they turn...

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Elaine Livingstone · 529 weeks ago

I am with the majority here, cheese, bread, packets, cereals, biscuits, fruit, veg etc quite happy to eat past its date. Meat, fish and perishables then no I tend t freeze before their date or bin them.