Today, my shopping was delivered and
the young lad said 'Your potatoes are on their date today, do you
want me to take them back?'
I looked at the spuds. They were dry,
clean, weren't sprouting or mouldy, so I said 'They'll be fine for
weeks yet.'
He gave me an odd look and said 'Well
OK, if you are alright with eating them after their date.'
I asked him if he would eat them and he
said no, he wouldn't because they would be past their date, he would
throw them out.
It got me thinking about how much
perfectly good food gets thrown away just because of a date printed
on the packet.
I was born before best before dates and
use by dates were printed on products.
We used our common sense back then. If
the bread wasn't mouldy, if the milk smelled OK, then it was fine to
use.
Dad grew fruit and veg, and after it
was harvested, it was stored in the shed and was used throughout the
Winter and into the next year – no best before dates there, either.
If it was firm and not mouldy, it got eaten.
These days we are urged to do more to
lessen food waste. So why are people still throwing away food that is
perfectly good to eat?
Maybe it is time that producers took
best before dates off of their food, so that people go back to using
their eyes and nose to see if things are still good, rather than
relying on a date.
So before you throw away that fruit,
veg or bread that is past its best before date, check it, feel it,
sniff it. If it looks good, smells good, feels good, then go ahead
and eat it, rather than throwing it away.
Make a difference today, both to the planet
and your purse.
