Another victory for common sense has just been announced.
Long-standing ‘freeze on the day of purchase’ food guidelines are being changed by Sainsbury’s as they relax their rules in a bid to reduce food wastage. The supermarket discovered that 800,000 tonnes of perfectly good food could be saved if a new food labeling system was brought into place.
The new initiative, in conjunction with WRAP, will involve changing food labels advising consumers to freeze food at any point prior to the use-by date, rather than immediately after purchase. The move comes after research by WRAP revealed that 60% of people believe the current reinforced labeling ‘rule’ that food has to be frozen on the day they buy it.
However, only 21% had frozen food that was nearing its use-by date and many admitting that they throw food away when it approaches the use-by date because they weren’t aware whether it was safe to freeze it.
"The 'freeze on day of purchase' advice needs to be changed as there is no food safety reason why it cannot be frozen at any point prior to the use by date," Beth Hart, Sainsbury’s head of product, said in a statement.
Food experts are hoping that this initiative could save up to £2bn worth of good food every year.
What the advice should read is that you can freeze the item (if suitable for freezing) up until the use by date. Then defrost and use immediately.
As one customer pointed out while giving feedback on previous labeling, 'How does the product know which day I purchased it on?'
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