Days are numbered for

“Best before" dates on food are being scrapped to cut Britain’s £6billion waste mountain.





Ministers reckon they encourage people to throw away food that is fine to eat and will urge shops to use a simple “use by" date instead.





Confusion over the labels is ­reckoned to be one reason why 5.3 million tonnes of edible food and drink are thrown away every year.





The Government want a “risk-based approach" with labels ­explaining the danger of eating old food.





Brits are reckoned to throw out 5,500 whole chickens, 440,000 ready meals, 5.1 million potatoes and 1.6 million bananas every day.





Ministers reckon they encourage people to throw away food that is fine to eat and will urge shops to use a simple “use by" date instead.





Confusion over the labels is ­reckoned to be one reason why 5.3 million tonnes of edible food and drink are thrown away every year.





The Government want a “risk-based approach" with labels ­explaining the danger of eating old food.





Brits are reckoned to throw out 5,500 whole chickens, 440,000 ready meals, 5.1 million potatoes and 1.6 million bananas every day.





Ministers will urge manufacturers to scrap “sell by" and “display until" dates which exist largely to help shops control stock levels.





The Government hope the shake-up will cut the huge amount of food dumped in landfill sites just because it has passed its “best before" date.





Fish, prawns and eggs will have to carry detailed labels warning of risks if eaten past a certain date.





But shops will be urged to put one simple “use by" label on most other food, say Whitehall sources.





Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman’s department will spearhead the move, to be announced within the next month. Ministers will insist the plan will cut waste and ease the burden of red tape on retailers.





Households in the UK throw away 8.3 million tonnes of food and drink every year, 5.3 million tonnes of which could have been eaten, say the Waste and Resources Action Programme. The Government-backed group estimate that the average family with children throw away a fifth of the food and drink they buy, wasting £680 a year.





Part of the problem is “buy-one-get-one-free" offers, ¬prompting shoppers to purchase too much.





An Environment Department spokesman said: “By law pre-packed food must show a ‘best before’ date, even though many foods are still safe to eat after that date. This is very different from the ‘use by’ date that shows when food is no longer safe and should be thrown away. Being clear on the difference could help reduce waste."





Food waste recycling is high on the agenda of Environmental Legislation and at Cawleys, we recognise these key waste management issues facing the food and drink sector. We encourage alternative and more sustainable food waste disposal solutions which often prove to be more cost effective and environmentally friendly than increasingly expensive and outdated traditional disposal options.





For more information on how Cawleys pioneering Food recycling scheme can help your business see http://cawleys.co.uk/Upload/file/A4%20Food%20case%20study%281%29.pdf





Our expertise, versatility and commitment to delivering a premium environmental service have made Cawleys a market leader in the organic waste sector.





Cawleys Waste Management can handle a wide range of foodstuffs which can prove difficult to dispose of, from raw meat and liquids, to heavily packaged, out-of-date stock. We can utilise our network of treatment points to find the most cost-effective, sustainable solution for each case – covering:





• In-Vessel Composting


• Animal Feed Merchants


• Rendering Plants for animal by products


• Waste to Energy Plants


• Anaerobic Digestion





Our dedicated food waste collection service includes:





* A collection network covering from the Midlands through to London


* Emergency collections following freezer breakdowns or vehicle accidents


* A safe, environmentally sustainable and fully auditable disposal route for food industry by-products


* Large fleet of specialist vehicles and containers including liquid tanker and palletised collections


* Collections to suit operational needs, six days a week


* Full compliance with latest EU legislation including animal by-product disposal


* Dedicated 24/7 customer helpdesk


* Tailor-made and cost-effective arrangements are provided for the disposal of a wide variety of materials.