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Original poster

M&S rotten fruit now no BBF date

108 replies

OnTheBoardwalk · 13/09/2022 21:51

I, like every else no doubt, have always taken best before dates for what they are. You see the date, have a sniff then crack on

since M&S have taken the dates off I’ve noticed all my fruit shop has been rotten and end of life. I had a delivery Saturday of 4 apples that usually last forever however they were rotten round the stem today. I've no idea when they were packaged up

i'm going to not buy M&S fruit/veg due to this latest initiative and go back to my own smell tests on BBF dates from other suppliers. Much less waste

is it just me?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
Lemonyfuckit · 15/09/2022 09:04

This is infuriating! We get M&S fruit and veg on an Ocado delivery, and I had noticed recently (past few orders) that strawberries were mouldy on the day of delivery - can't remember whether they had a best before/use by date on them, as I just claimed a refund via Ocado. If Ocado start making it that you can't claim a refund for stuff going mouldy within a 'reasonable' timeframe of delivery (in absence of use by dates I'll use my own judgement) then I think we'll have to rethink how we shop as at least when you pick it yourself in the store you have the opportunity to try and gauge how ripe things look, but it's enormously frustrating from a cost and waste perspective. We also disregard best before dates and just go by look/smell and it's extremely rare that we waste any food at all in our household so this makes me really annoyed if they're just going to use this as an excuse and start palming off their on the turn stuff on people.

EsmaCannonball · 15/09/2022 09:55

I'm really good at avoiding food waste by buying stuff as fresh as possible so it lasts as long as possible. I never chuck out fruit and vegetables unless they have obviously gone off. The tomatoes and pineapple I bought from M&S last week went off really quickly.

I suspect this is more about companies avoiding in-store price reductions and pushing the cost of food waste onto customers.

BluOcty · 15/09/2022 10:04

Yeah I was thinking that it must be to do with the supply chains. Is stuff is taking much longer to get across the border now?

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General food
Discovereads · 15/09/2022 10:07

BluOcty · 15/09/2022 10:04

Yeah I was thinking that it must be to do with the supply chains. Is stuff is taking much longer to get across the border now?

Yes it is, and it’s also more expensive to ship to us instead of the rest of the EU due to customs paperwork so the supply is lower.

BluOcty · 15/09/2022 10:10

Ahh those brexit benefits just keep on coming. I switched to frozen berries which aren't cheap but are definitely longer lasting.

NotABeliever · 15/09/2022 11:54

Agree it must be a Brexit perk

Original poster
OnTheBoardwalk · 15/09/2022 11:54

SavingsThreads · 15/09/2022 06:48

Ocaso do it too OP so I'm afraid you're still getting dateless F&V!

D'oh. Didn’t realise it was everywhere until I read the comments

looks like I'll be eating all the fruit and veg I’ve ordered tonight in the one hour I’ll prob have before they all turn rotten

As PP said, looks like frozen is the way to go

OP posts:
Lorrymum · 15/09/2022 12:21

Sell by dates were obviously introduced for a reason. I can see a rapid return when customers are constantly having to return/reject food that is spoiled.

SomethingOnce · 15/09/2022 12:22

Had some distinctly woolly apples from Sainso’s with these new best-before date-free labels.

I’ve always played fast and loose with best-befores as an ethical thing, but it’s clearly being used as a way to fob off truly past-it produce on unsuspecting (not for long, eh?!) consumers.

Naughty.

shumway · 15/09/2022 12:25

Yeah my apples have all been rubbish lately - bruised and old.

Discovereads · 15/09/2022 12:30

Sigh, my Waitrose delivery this morning just gave me mouldy bananas. So I went on the webpage and although I could swear I remember being able to do an online refund request like with Ocado, this appears to have disappeared. Waitrose website now says I have to physically return the item to a Waitrose shop in its original packaging with proof of purchase to get a refund. I’m disabled, I cannot physically get to a Waitrose not without a £7 bus fare..which is counter productive considering the refund would be for £1.25. 🤨

So I’ve done the item quality feedback form and uploaded a photo of the mouldy bananas and put in the text box a request for an online refund to be processed due to my being unable to physically return them. If this thread is still active, I’ll update and let you know if that works….

BeanieTeen · 15/09/2022 12:34

I had a feeling this would happen. Market stalls don’t seem to have this issue but supermarkets that don’t use best before dates seem to just use it as an excuse to sell fruit and veg until it starts rotting, it’s not fresh. Same happened in Lidl when they got rid of best before dates.

MrsFezziwig · 15/09/2022 12:36

Absolutely nothing to do with food waste. The longevity of fruit and veg has gone off a cliff since Brexit/Covid. I live alone too, if I buy a pack of six tomatoes I used to have no problem having an average of one tomato a day for six days, now when I buy them they’re already bordering on over-ripe. I need to pick the packs with the longest sell by date for a reason!

I’d love to hear if anyone on here works for a supermarket and can tell us how to decipher the codes!

Yalz · 15/09/2022 17:10

In M&S this morning. The yellow stickered (only slightly reduced) tomatoes and satsumas both had the coded date of yesterday. The other stock with yellow stickers which had a clear date on printed on them showed today’s date. These were things like milk and burgers.

When I saw the fruit I wasn’t sure of today’s date. Two very casually dressed men, both wearing badges with their first names and “Manager” on them, were near to the fruit so I asked them what today’s date was. When one of them answered me, I said something to the effect that the satsumas were past their date then. I pointed to the code, which was something like 2 letters 1409 2 more letters, without gaps. “Oh, that’s not the use by date. We’re not printing those on the produce any more.”
I gave him a “Really, who are you kidding?” look. His face seemed to say, “You’re right, but I can’t say that.”

Discovereads · 15/09/2022 18:06

I read a heartwarming article about Sainsburys giving its workers a pay raise and “free food” to help with the cost of living crisis now after this thread, I’m wondering if this “free food” is really “free rotting food” ….given what they are selling I can’t imagine that what is free is any better.

Pixiedust1234 · 15/09/2022 18:15

It's a new initiative. Apparently customers were sticking too rigidly to the best before dates and throwing away good food. To help us stop throwing away good food they took away BB dates.

Yeah, apparently we are too stupid. Nothing to do with palming off rotten food for maximum price 🙄

stillherenow · 15/09/2022 18:17

I can't get decent fruit and veg through online shopping anymore, I'm going to go back to my greengrocer, I feel bad as I stopped going during covid but I don't suppose he'll remember me !! I'm also going to start buying chicken at the butchers as that's rubbish too!

Blossomandbee · 15/09/2022 18:21

I'm not sure if it's just to do with best before dates, a lot of fresh produce seems to be poor quality at the moment.
I bought strawberries last week from Morrisons that looked fine in the shop and had the longest best before date of several days ahead, yet went mushy and had started to grow white fur in the fridge overnight!
Also had to return oranges to Asda that were well in date and yet were full of odd looking holes.

LemonSwan · 15/09/2022 18:23

Apples whattt!! They usually last a good month

maucat · 15/09/2022 18:28

I hate this system. The dairy stuff concerns me as I worry I will give my kids milk/dairy on the turn. I don't consume much myself.

There must be a way to decode the packets as surely the staff have to be rotating and removing stocks that could be dangerous to health?
I read on news article about this a comment from a doctor who said this was just what the NHS needed-a bunch of accidental food poisoning. Not everyone has fully functioning senses (eyesight/smell/taste) so they can just take a gamble every meal time.

Youreeavinalaff · 15/09/2022 18:36

I shop with Ocado and the fruit and veg has been terrible over the last few weeks in particular, we're now buying it from Lidl or Sainsburys (in person). Fed up with soft grapes, rubbery carrots and brocoli and potatoes covered in brown spots!

ArseInTheCoOpWindow · 15/09/2022 18:40

The thought of buying fruit which has been subject to the sniff test by several previous people🤢

Furball · 15/09/2022 19:22

I'm getting the same from Ocado and make sure I get refunds on everything that doesn't last or goes mouldy within a few days.

I've even had black bananas delivered

Its ridiculous - they should put a 'packaged on' date so that us/them have an idea of timeframe.

I'm sure more is being thrown out by consumers now, BUT it's more profit for them as they get a sale regardless.

MinnyMous · 15/09/2022 19:27

I have stopped buying fruit and veg from M&S. I’ve had to return sweet potatoes that have gone rotten in the bag and well before their BB date. I buy them regularly and they usually last weeks. I’ve also had strawberries that’s have gone rotten the day after I bought them. I also hate the amount of packaging for reason everyone is saying not being able to check the quality but it is also very bad environmentally. You can’t claim on the one hand that removing BB dates is to stop food waste and therefore help the environment and then package everything in layers of plastic or even cardboard for that matter.

MinervaTerrathorn · 15/09/2022 19:39

I'm glad Lidl seem to still have dates on packaged foods. We are a family of two and some things only one of us eats so we need the longest dates. I will buy different mushrooms if the ones I want are all short dated for example. Usually still eat foods past the bbd but I want good dates to start with.