Just because the best-before date has passed does not mean that a food is bad. Nevertheless, many consumers regularly throw such products in the bin, a survey shows. They were also asked what would help with the problem.
“The best before date (MHD) is not a throwaway date,” writes the Federal Ministry of Food on its website. But many consumers apparently still understand the statement that way. According to a recent survey, many people in Germany regularly throw away food because the BBD has expired.
A representative survey conducted by GfK on behalf of the . Every seventh person even throws out-of-date groceries in the bin every week. On the other hand, one in five stated that they never throw away food for this reason.
Younger people throw more food in the bin
According to a survey, people under the age of 40 throw away food with an expired best-before date particularly frequently. The same applies to parents who live with children in the household. These groups are also the least confident in assessing whether expired food can still be eaten. They also see throwing away less of a problem than other groups. The opposite is true for older people: only one in five of those surveyed over the age of 60 regularly threw food into the bin.
A matter of standard of living is the question of how much is thrown away, but apparently not. “We were surprised that factors such as household income or the size of the place of residence do not seem to have any influence on throw-away behavior,” says NIM Managing Director Andreas Neus.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, around eleven million tons of food waste are generated in Germany every year, around 60 percent in private households. At least part of it is still edible. The Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL): “After the best-before date, a food is not automatically spoiled or no longer suitable for human consumption.” When stored correctly, the food is usually still suitable for consumption without restrictions. “So look, smell and taste carefully – that can save a lot of food from the bin and helps to save money.”
The best before date is not the same as the use by date
Something different from the best-before date is the use-by date, which applies to perishable foods such as minced meat. There are definitely health risks here after the expiry – or in the event of insufficient cooling. The use-by date can be seen from the packaging imprint “to be used by” and consumers should also adhere to this according to the BMEL.
In the GfK survey, the respondents were also presented with various solutions on how to avoid that expired but still edible food ends up in the garbage. Nine out of ten respondents were in favor of the best-before date being supplemented with further information on the cases in which the food can still be consumed after it has expired. For example, a large majority supports the addition: “Please always check the edibility of the product before throwing it away.” On the other hand, only 37 percent of respondents think that the MHD should be completely abolished and only the production date should be printed, the rest are against it.
A large majority is also in favor of allowing containers, as the federal government is currently striving for. In addition, 85 percent of those surveyed demand that retailers, manufacturers and businesses should be prohibited from throwing away edible food. Instead, these should be handed over to the Tafel or other non-profit organizations. On the other hand, only a minority of 43.5 percent agrees with such a throw away ban (or donation requirement) for private individuals.
Source: Stern
