Use by dates

It always surprises me the sheer number of posters who come along to say 'if it looks and smells ok it's fine'. It's pretty basic science to say that isn't always the case.

What kind of meal was it?

I'm also one of those heathens who doesn't pay much attention to use by dates. I had a yogurt earlier that had a use by of 27th March, tasted fine, same for milk as long as it doesn't smell off, fish no, don't eat meat much, cheese, don't care what date is, just cut off any odd looking edges, eggs yes sometimes up to two weeks after use by and always fine in an omelette or baking.

I use the vinegar trick for fresh fruit, keeps for ages in a container, and I put fresh lemons in a kilner jar of water, last a month. So many things will be ok, I promise....

I think you kind of know the items that won't kill you. I think!

I'm also in the sniff and decide camp but even if it smelled ok, I wouldn't eat chicken or fish over the date as it's just not worth the repercussions, and if it's in a sauce, that could mask the off smell? Beef, lamb or pork I'd probably eat as they keep much longer.

I’d be hesitant about prawns, chicken etc but most other food items are an open
and sniff job.

I would have eaten it. It's going to be heated, isn't it?

Do people still worry about things like this?

Proper food (meat, veg) I would be OK with a ready meal has already been mucked about with so I would be more concerned. Probably perfectly fine though if you have looked after it properly, they have to have a margin.

I would have eaten it depending on what it was I'm immunocompromised don't tell my doctor
If it was in a cold fridge and not an over warm one
Fish? No
Veggie something then yes
Meat I would have sniffed first but more than likely eaten it

I'm a bit OTT with use by dates and am with you.

While it's true that supermarkets have to be strict with dates as a pp said...

Supermarkets and manufacturers don't set a Use By date for fun. It will be based on testing and data. It's in both the supermarket and manufacturer's interest to maximise the shelf life because they'll waste less. There's only so much time that can be tagged on 'to be safe' before a product would no longer be commercially viable.

For that reason, we trust the dates! It's not like food turns to poison on the stroke of midnight, but the risk of getting poorly will increase as time goes on.

Bad food doesn't always smell or taste off. Toxins produced by microorganisms can be tasteless and heat stable (that's why nuking bad rice in the microwave for ages won't make it safe to eat).

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

I don’t care much for use by dates, you can see or certainly be able to smell your food - that should tell you if it’s off.
Mind you, and I’m not being snobby about ready meals here!!! But we don’t buy ready meals, just meat/veg etc and I wonder if it’s easier to tell when eg a chicken has gone off or your broccoli is mouldy. Ready meals have loads of preservatives, colourings, flavourings etc added to them which could either help by keeping it fresher for longer or mask anything dodgy because it ‘smells okay. As I said, I’m not being rude by saying we don’t buy ready meals, I’m not judging either, I’m just musing if it’s generally harder to tell with eg a ready made cottage pie or something!!
I think if it was chicken or fish anyway I’d be more wary but other than that would have gone for it.

Mind you, those who thought it looked all right and smelt all right and ate it...but consequently died, aren't on here to give their view! 😉

I think it’s wasteful to just throw food out before checking that nobody else would have been happy to eat it - so YABU. Ready meals have preservatives added for extended shelf life so it would probably have been fine.

I'd have eaten it if it smelt and looked OK. Supermarkets have to be very strict with use by dates as they could face lawsuits if customers were getting ill but most foods are fine to eat a couple of days after them.

I don't pay much attention to dates, even "Use By". If it looks all right and smells all right then I'll eat it. I'm still alive.