I am very pleased to see that there is a new trend afoot over in the UK. Large warehouse-style stores are opening up across England selling 'past their best-before date' foods.
I believe the company involved is called 'Rogers', and I can see them expanding at a huge rate. The one below is their latest store which is based at Stockport (south of Manchester). It looks HUGE.
If they should go public in the near future, I suggest you throw some cash their way; you could do very well (probably short term).
I think we all know that best-before dates are mostly nonsense; especially when it comes to canned foods, so selling things at about half price is going to attract hoards of clients. I wish 'Rogers' very good luck.
An enterprise with a determined nod toward common good sense. What a good story!
ReplyDeleteOne can only wonder why it hadn't happened earlier!
DeleteAnything to cut food wastage and 'best before' and 'use by' paranoia deserves success.
ReplyDeleteI agree, it was crazy filling landfill sites with perfectly good food, simply because it was a day out of date!
DeleteWe have similar here - not as large as that - called "Reduced to Clear" .
ReplyDeleteGood. I'd go myself if there was one handy.
DeleteGood idea. Probably wouldn't work here. Sell by dates are sacred though it's amazing how much just stays on the shelves long after.
ReplyDeleteIt's a cultural thing. My sis in law would be horrified to know we ate something one day after the date has expired, so would K but not me . What he doesn't know doesn't hurt him, so far
That surprises me. I thought it was only 'elf-n-safety folk who took any notice. The best tests of food safety are mostly eyes and noses; not dates.
DeleteOnly near big cities at the moment, unlikely to see them round here!
ReplyDelete( The photo could be a plot scene from Midsummer Murders - man crushed by falling tins in discount warehouse!)
I wonder what's in all those yellow cans? If it's Tonic Water, I'll be sending Lady M over for her year's supply.
DeleteI take little notice of those dates. If it isn't covered in blue mould and smells OK it gets eaten!
ReplyDeleteMany years ago, my friend left her then 18 yr old son home alone for a few days. When she returned, it was to find he had thrown out everything from the freezer that was " out of date" !!
I must admit that I do occasionally throw out stuff from the freezer, but usually because if it's been there for years, we probably aren't going to eat it anyway!
DeleteAn excellent idea. As you say, the best indicators are your eyes and nose.
ReplyDeleteLady M won't eat cheese when it starts to go mouldy. Me; I love it like that.
DeleteMy grandson ŵas horrified to see me cut away the moldy layer of cheese and eat the perfectly good stuff underneath. I tried to explain cheese making to him. He probably will never eat cheese again.
DeleteI agree with you. Best Before dates on cans and dry goods (pasta etc) tend to be ignored in our house. I am more careful with milk, it always gets the sniff test. Don't want to end up with cottage cheese in my tea.
ReplyDeleteI buy quite small milk 'bottles', that get used reasonably quickly. No chance of cheese.
DeleteWhen we were children there were no "best before" or "use by" dates. Instead we used our sense of smell. I do not recall news stories about masses of people dying because their cans of baked beans were five years old.
ReplyDeleteOf course not, and no-one had allergies either.
DeleteMy nieces and younger people I know are sticklers for use by dates, I had to retrieve a yoghurt once my niece had put out because it was a day out of date. I suppose they were the first generation to have such information on food and will pass on this culture to their kids. We pensioners may be the last generation eating regardless of what it says on the tin.
ReplyDeleteWell, by the success of these new shops, I think not. It looks like 'the older the better'.
DeleteMy family down in Dorset have had an Out-of-Date shop near them for the past 10 years or so, so it's not a new thing, just fairly thinly spread at the moment. The more the better I say!
ReplyDeleteLucky them, I'm obviously behind the times.
DeleteThis is not new. Approved foods.co.uk have been going for years. Sell everything from tins snacks toiletries for pennies. Best before never use by. Also end of ranges, factory mistakes ie spelling wrong labels. Asda labels on m n s tins. Colgate toothpaste etc with a y instead of g. Is online and their postage is very cheap. Other companies are just following in their footsteps.
ReplyDeleteI do like the sound of mis-spelt things going cheaply. Do they sell Fiftee Pownd Noats?
DeleteI have a huge supply of Colyate toothpaste,paers clear soap. Nescafé gold bland. And more. Ah Heinz ketchup with a picture of apple's on the label.factory muck ups they can't sell unless v cheap
DeleteThey do a lucky bag for 3.50 great fun all random weird stuff. Prob worth about 30 quid. But fun
DeleteHow wonderful, they sound like 'Collectors Items'.
DeleteWasn't there a comedy sketch about food becoming lethally toxic one minute after its date expires? I've used tinned stuff years after its best before date. And ointments.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure we all do, and no piles of corpses lining the streets.
DeleteThere is already B&M going well here, but it doesn't look as big as that....it's huge! We will have to look out for it!
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be surprised to hear that they're in every High Street. They're just what the UK wants.
DeleteFive of the warehouses so far...
DeleteI know B&M is in Scottish and Welsh towns. If it means that food doesn't go to waste and lower income houses can afford good food, it is a good system