'Use by' or 'best before'?
The best-before date was introduced to safeguard the quality and safety of food products. It is meant to make clear until when a product may be consumed. In practice, however, two different types of date marking are used, which can sometimes lead to confusion.
Pascal Brysse
'Use by' or 'best before'?
The best-before date was introduced to safeguard the quality and safety of food products. It is meant to make clear until when a product may be consumed. In practice, however, two different types of date marking are used, which can sometimes lead to confusion.
Food does not keep indefinitely. A number of biological processes eventually cause food to spoil. This can happen in 4 ways. Over a shorter or longer period, micro-organisms such as bacteria or moulds develop, both in and on the food. Enzymatic changes can also cause spoilage: certain proteins react with oxygen, resulting in discolouration or a change in flavour. Chemical spoilage, such as oxidation, can also occur, causing an unpleasant smell and taste. Finally, there is physicochemical spoilage, in which the structure of the food product degrades.
Depending on the type of food, the preservation treatment applied and the storage method, spoilage will occur sooner or later, meaning the shelf life will be longer or shorter.
The different types of date marking
Food labels can carry two different types of date marking: 'use by' or 'best before'. There is indeed a difference between the two, one that not everyone is aware of. This lack of awareness can pose a risk to health and lead to food waste.
Use by
Food that is highly perishable from a microbiological point of view must carry a use-by date. This is expressed with the words 'use by', 'à consommer jusqu'au' or 'te gebruiken tot'. Food in this category can spoil quickly and is almost always kept chilled. Examples include fresh fish, fresh meat, cold cuts and prepared salads.
Once the use-by date has passed, the producer can no longer guarantee the safety of the product. In fact, these products can pose an immediate health risk shortly after the use-by date.
Best before
Less perishable products such as cereals, tinned food, frozen food, herbs, coffee and tea can be kept for a very long time. Under European Union rules, these products must carry a minimum durability date. This is expressed with the words 'best before', 'à consommer de préférence avant' or 'ten minste houdbaar tot', or alternatively 'best before end', 'à consommer de préférence avant fin' or 'ten minste houdbaar tot einde'. The ideal storage method for the product may also be stated, for example 'store in a cool, dry place'.
Once the minimum durability date has passed, consuming the product will not endanger health, provided it has been stored correctly and the packaging is undamaged. What can happen is that the product loses some of its flavour, smell and texture. The minimum durability date is, in effect, the date up to which the producer can guarantee quality.
Must every pack carry a durability date?
For certain products, there is no requirement to state a minimum durability date. Loose fruit and vegetables do not need a durability date: you can simply look at or smell them to check whether they are still usable. Other products, such as sugar, salt and alcoholic drinks with an alcohol content above 10%, keep for virtually unlimited periods when stored in a dry environment. Here too, stating a durability date is not compulsory.
How is the durability date determined?
Producers determine the shelf life of their own products, often on the basis of tests or simulations.
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