Issues Associated With Sell By / Use By Dates
According to the UK Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP), 33% percent of all food produced is wasted along the chill chain or by the consumer. At the same time, a large number of people get sick every year due to spoiled food. According to the WHO and CDC, every year in the USA there are 76 million foodborne illnesses, leading to 325,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths.
According to former UK minister Hilary Benn, the use by date and sell by dates are old technologies that are outdated and should be replaced by other solutions or disposed of altogether. The UK government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs revised guidance in 2011 to exclude the use of sell by dates. The guidance was prepared in consultation with the food industry, consumer groups, regulators, and Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP). It aims to reduce the annual £12bn of wasted supermarket food.
Read more about this topic: Shelf Life
Famous quotes containing the words issues, sell and/or dates:
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—Penelope Leach (20th century)
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—Robert Benchley (1889–1945)
“I never heard of an old man forgetting where he had buried his money! Old people remember what interests them: the dates fixed for their lawsuits, and the names of their debtors and creditors.”
—Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 B.C.)