Morrisons - to think this might backfire?

[Magicpaintbrush]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-59928650
Morrisons are planning to remove the 'use by' date on their milk to prevent food waste, the idea being that people sniff it before they use it instead. I think reducing food waste is brilliant but ... AIBU to think that quite a lot of people will chuck milk out even sooner without 'use by' guidance as they won't know if it's still ok to use. And if, as the article suggests, milk is often fine for a few days after the use by date, why don't they just extend the use by date instead then ? I also think it will lead some people to chuck it on the 'best before' date if that's the only date on the label, thus wasting even more. I don't personally think I would trust a sniff test, I wouldn't feel confident about it. I think this new policy might lead to more waste not less, and would put me off buying it. Or is it just me?

Why would it put you off buying it? There will still be a date on it and going a few days over that date is not going to do you any harm

Maybe people need to learn the difference between use by and best before dates

Must admit I've never looked at a "use by" date on milk in my life. Always work on the basis that if it stinks - it's off. Otherwise it's OK.

I never use the date on milk, I sniff.

And milk tends to just have 1 date that says use by
All they're doing is replacing that with a date that says best before instead

I think this is fine. I don't treat it as a use by anyway. I always do a sniff. We regularly use milk to a week past the date. My other half was a bit concerned, as he got a mouthful of sour milk once as a kid, but he seems to have come round to my way of thinking!

Using the sniff test when parosmia is rife isn't the best idea

I think we need to move back to more of this type of thinking. We have got to used to someone sticking a date on something which is only ever a rough guide.

@Lacedwithgrace

Using the sniff test when parosmia is rife isn't the best idea

Go by the date then as there will still be one

I'm another who doesn't really pay attention to dates on milk, I do the sniff test instead. I only use milk in tea and occasionally porridge so a litre can last me two weeks. When milk has gone off it smells bad, you know about it, if it doesn't smell, it's fine to use.

I don't usually bother going by the dates on things - you can see and smell when milk is past it.

I don't think people who stick ridgidly to dates really differentiate between best before/ use by though so I don't predict it'll have much of an impact.

I think it’s a great idea

It's just you who didn't read the article properly anyway (or even down to the second paragraph).

They are changing the use by date to a 'best before'.

This is marketing dressed up as news.

I always go over anyway. Relying on the tea test.
If milk goes clumpy in your tea it’s off.

I think it's a good idea, something needs to be done to try and reduce the waste of throwing away perfectly good food because people can't use common sense

It's pretty obvious if your milk has gone off, why do you not trust yourself to be able to tell?

I don't have an issue with this either. I work in a supermarket, milk arrives and is sold very fast (we get a delivery nearly everyday) so customers are already getting the best life possible on milk bought in this way. Fresh produce can also go off before this date occasionally especially if the cold chain was broken at any point however you'd be entitled to a refund most likely.

I think if you rely solely on used by/best before dates then this won't change anything. However I imagine most people used these dates as guidelines as use common sense as well. Do you also throw away perfectly fine fruit and veg because it's past the date on the packaging? You might be horrified that I ate grapes with the 28th December on them today and they were fine.

We used to live abroad, and lots of stuff had a packed on, or produced on, date.
Allowed you to work out what order to use stuff in, but no bbe date. Personally, I think it was great.

@DerAlteMann

Must admit I've never looked at a "use by" date on milk in my life. Always work on the basis that if it stinks - it's off. Otherwise it's OK.

Me too. Trust me op, you can tell when milk has gone off!

I want a use by/ best before date when I am buying the milk to know that I am not picking up the last of the 3 day old cartons not put out in time. Once it gets home it helps to have the date to pull the old cartons first so if they were going to do that I would not be buying milk from them.

I think it's you OP

I've never looked at a best before date in a milk bottle ever. Like others have said, just sniff it first. Skimmed milk send to last forever and never go off, anything with a fat content goes off quicker.

When people are loosing their sense of smell with covid it’s not ideal is it 😂

Milk can be ok even ten days after the official use by date. It's easy to tell when it's gone off.

I would need the date 100%

I think we need to start doing more of this. People waste so much food that doesn't need to be thrown.

We get milk delivered in reusable glass bottles and I always lose the foil with the date. I always just check by smell so this wouldn't bother me at all, great idea.

@ACCx

I would need the date 100%

Why?