McDonald’s is selling thousands of meals a day using food more than a MONTH past best before dates
McDONALD’S is selling thousands of meals a day using food more than a month past best before dates.
The firm is using stocks after all 1,350 restaurants shut in March’s lockdown.
Chicken Selects from earlier this month were made with frozen food several weeks beyond the ‘best before’ date[/caption]Most of its outlets have now received chicken and other frozen items from partner Martin Brower’s four UK depots.
Some are “best before” early September.
All are safe until they reach their “use by” date — when they must be binned by law.
Customers also questioned why the firm did not tell its 3.8million daily customers.
PR expert Blair Metcalfe said McDonald’s could be praised for not wasting food — but may have missed an opportunity.
He said: “Supermarkets discount or give away food close to best before dates. Why didn’t McDonald’s do that?”
The fast food giant said: “To control stock levels, McDonald’s supply chain sets internal best before timeframes much shorter than the required ‘use by’ dates for products.
Use By is the only date that matters
By Andrew Parry, food expert at charity WRAP
THERE is only one date that matters with food, Use By.
You should not eat food past the Use By. Best Before is a guide when food is at its best.
Stored correctly, food is safe days, weeks, months or even years after the Best Before date.
By freezing and using food beyond the Best Before date, McDonald’s is ensuring it isn’t wasted and is safely used.
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“While preparing to reopen restaurants earlier this year, we extended best-before dates on a small selection of frozen products to reduce waste.
“These will all be used comfortably within their use by date.
“We worked closely with suppliers to ensure safety and quality were not compromised in any way by this extension.”
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