Morrisons scrap 'use by' dates on milk in a bid to reduce food waste

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Supermarket giant Morrisons will soon scrap 'use by' dates on milk and replace the warning with' best before' dates. The retailer is making the move in a bid to reduce food waste.

It is hoped that customers will instead use a sniff test to check the quality of their milk. The change comes into force at the end of this month - January - and will apply to 90 per cent of Morrisons' own brand milk.

Recycling charity Wrap says Morrisons is the first supermarket to announce the move. Ian Goode, senior milk buyer at Morrisons, said: “Wasted milk means wasted effort by our farmers and unnecessary carbon being released into the atmosphere.“Good quality well-kept milk has a good few days life after normal ‘use by’ dates – and we think it should be consumed, not tipped down the sink.“So, we’re taking a bold step today and asking customers to decide whether their milk is still good to drink.“Generations before us have always used the sniff test – and I believe we can too.”Spoiled milk gives off a sour smell and is often curdled in consistency.According to Wrap, milk was the third most wasted food product throughout the UK - after potatoes and bread - with around 490 million pints waster each year.It is estimated that 85 million pints of milk waste was because 'use by' dates, with customers throwing away milk despite researching finding the dairy product can often be used after the date noted on the bottle.Marcus Gover, of Wrap, said: “I am delighted that Morrisons is the first UK supermarket to take this important step to help reduce household food waste – it shows real leadership and we look forward to more retailers reviewing date labels on their products and taking action.” Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and