Sainsbury’s is set to change its milk labelling system in an effort to reduce food waste and empower customers to make informed decisions about the quality of their food. The move will impact 44 products, including fresh and organic milk sold across England, Scotland, and Wales, amounting to over 730 million pints of milk sold annually.
Research conducted by WRAP has highlighted that milk is the third most wasted food in the UK, with a staggering 490 million pints discarded each year due to expiration. To combat this issue, Sainsbury’s will be introducing best-before dates on their milk packaging, encouraging customers to rely on sensory cues such as smell to determine if the milk is still consumable.
The implementation of the new labelling system will begin in the upcoming year and is anticipated to be fully adopted by the end of February 2024.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) distinguishes between use-by dates, which are related to food safety, and best-before dates, which indicate food quality. Use-by dates should not be exceeded, while best-before dates serve as guidelines and allow for consumption beyond that date.
Sainsbury’s aims to align its customers with the FSA’s suggestion of using sensory cues to determine the freshness of milk with best-before date labels. Ruth Cranston, the director of corporate responsibility and sustainability at Sainsbury’s, emphasized the importance of combatting food waste and empowering customers to reduce unnecessary disposal of food.
WRAP’s director of behavior change and business programs, Catherine David, expressed her delight at Sainsbury’s initiative and highlighted the environmental and financial consequences of food waste. She also mentioned how employing appropriate date labels can significantly decrease the amount of edible food that is thrown away.
