Almost all food products have an expiration date on their packaging. The exception, perhaps, is fresh vegetables and fruits. But they also have a recommended period after which storage is impossible. Expired products must be disposed of. Let's consider different variants, as is permitted after removal of products from the sales floor.

Why should you dispose of expired products?

Destroying many products after their expiration dates is actually necessary. This applies primarily to perishable culinary products, fresh meat or fish. Other types of products, if the period is not exceeded too much, do not pose a serious health hazard. But according to Russian legislation, they are required to be destroyed or processed without any examination. The very fact of delay already leads to the need for disposal.

Why is this happening? Sanitary doctors We are sure that even harmless chocolate or cereal long-term storage dangerous to health.

The fats in these products break down into trans fats, which threaten a person with cancer, atherosclerosis and early aging. What can we say about rotten meat or fish, which guarantee poisoning.

Selling goods from expired suitability threatens the trading enterprise with serious fines. Therefore, supermarket owners have to think about where to put the goods removed from the shelves - send them to the supplier or dispose of them themselves. Sometimes they act illegally - they sell expired goods on the market, through advertisements, or take them to the nearest landfill under the cover of darkness. For such actions you can get a decent fine. Let's talk about how to do it right.

Disposal options

In other countries, food that has recently expired is sold at low prices or given to socially disadvantaged people. Even special offline and online stores are opening. There is no such practice in Russia. Other disposal options are accepted here.

Disposal in landfills

This is not the best technique, because when food is buried, the earth suffers from an abundance of pathogenic organisms that arise during the process of decay. Additionally, some landfills simply dump food and leave it to decompose. This causes not only a disgusting smell, but also a greenhouse effect. In addition, plastic packaging will sit in landfills for many years.

Complete destruction of goods

The expired food is burned in special ovens called crematoria. The method, of course, is not the most environmentally friendly, but it is better than landfills. Moreover, fertilizers are created on the basis of such ash.

Biological processing

This is the natural decomposition of products in a hermetically sealed closed containers. Expired goods are distributed by type into special storage facilities for composting, where the temperature required for decomposition is maintained. The residues can be used in industry or agriculture.

Grinding of biological waste in packaging

For this purpose, special installations are used to create a homogeneous mass. After this, it is processed, saturated additional components and is used as a component in the production of cement. Shredding of packaged products as a type of business in the Russian Federation is carried out by specialized companies: Ecotruck, EcoTechCity and others.

Production of animal feed

And not only for pets. Most of overdue waste is used after processing for livestock and poultry feed. For example, in the form of meat and bone meal, fish meal, and feed additives. Both vegetables and fruits, as well as meat, fish, sausage, bread, and even confectionery are suitable for this type of disposal. Sometimes store owners send such products to animal shelters. But even in this case, veterinary permission and the signing of an agreement indicating that expired products will not be used for their intended purpose are required.

Production of jam, vinegar or alcohol

Expired fruits can be used to make jams, or to produce alcohol or vinegar. The sale of such goods to manufacturers of jams and vinegars will also require an indication in the contract of non-use for its intended purpose.

Cooking

If the expiration date is about to expire, but there is no expired product yet, retailers themselves find use for such products. Sausages, meat, fish, etc. become ingredients for salads, pizzas and other culinary dishes.

Complete destruction of goods with minimal exceeding of the expiration date is economically unprofitable, reckless and not very beneficial for the environment. It is hoped that in the near future there will be more ways recycling, and, possibly, the sale of long-term storage - the same condensed milk, confectionery, products of plant origin.

According to various studies, globally, about 30% of total number produced food ends up in the trash. And in the USA this figure is 40%. This is determined by various factors, one of which is misunderstanding the expiration date indicated on the packaging.

People throw away a lot of food

Some products, for example, fresh milk, meat, confectionery, really cannot be eaten after the expiration date. They become dangerous to the body, so it is better to throw them away or give them to pets after the date indicated on the label.

The expiration date of other products indicates that the manufacturer guarantees preservation for the specified time. nutritional value and taste of the product. After the expiration date, these products usually do not become dangerous to humans. This is true for cereals, pasta, sugar, etc. However, residents of the United States and other countries still throw away these products when they see that they are expired.

The former president of the TraderJoe's chain of stores, Doug Rauch, found a way not only to reduce the share of wasted food, but also to make money from it. He plans to open a supermarket selling only expired products. Consultants will work at the DagaRaucha supermarket to teach people how to safely cook expired products, reducing the likelihood of poisoning.

Supermarket where you can buy discounted products

Mr. Rauch plans to buy expired products from other stores. Expired products will be sold at a discount, which, according to the entrepreneur, is guaranteed to attract customers to the store.

Supermarket of expired products in Russia

Domestic entrepreneurs can take advantage of DagRouch’s idea and open a supermarket in Russia for expired and expiring products. Of course, residents of the Russian Federation are less likely to throw away food compared to the population of the United States or Europe. However, in Russia there is another factor that can be used to realize this idea. The level of income of the citizens of our country remains low, which determines the high demand for discounted goods.

Russian businessmen need to slightly change the business idea of ​​DagaRouch. A Russian store should not accept products for sale that, at least theoretically, could harm the health of customers. These, for example, include eggs, canned food and dairy products, which the American entrepreneur plans to sell. This step will increase customer confidence in the Russian store, and will also relieve entrepreneurs from problems with regulatory authorities.

The domestic supermarket should concentrate on selling goods with expiring dates, purchasing them at a discount in other stores. Expired products can also be included in the range. However, they must mandatory pass sanitary inspection. For example, pasta or cereals that have expired should not be caked or moldy.

You can sell milk with an expiration date in the supermarket

By purchasing products with expiration dates, entrepreneurs take on the responsibility increased risk. For example, if purchased milk is not sold within 1-2 days, it will have to be disposed of. This must be taken into account when assessing purchase and selling prices for goods.

To open a supermarket of expired products, entrepreneurs will need the following resources:

Retail premises and equipment, including counters, refrigerators, stands and cash registers.
Financial resources for the purchase of goods.
Personnel and funds for wages.
Partnerships with large grocery stores. Most of them will willingly agree to resell expired and expiring products.
Funds for project marketing.

The considered idea is promising due to its novelty for Russian market, as well as high demand for high-quality discounted food products. One of the main problems that entrepreneurs must solve is interaction with regulatory authorities. Businessmen need convincing sanitary services safe from expired pasta, sugar or cereals.

Some chefs believe that there is nothing wrong with mold on food; scientists do not always agree: there are expired products that can be hazardous to health. Some people advise smelling food so as not to throw it away prematurely...

Smell rather than look at dates

It's amazing how people could live before the advent of expiration date labels that tell us by what date they should be consumed. specific product. It turns out that we can do without it. Previously, in most cases, we relied on the smell of food and then decided whether it was worth eating or not. Today, about half of the total population relies solely on date labels on packaging and, as a result, often throws away food that is still safe to eat. According to the Waste Resources Action Program (WRAP), an organization that promotes sustainable development, around 4.2 tonnes of food is wasted in the UK every year, which in addition to financial costs, greatly affects the environment.

Photo by Alamy, The Guardian

Either we buy too much, or we cook too much, or we forget to store leftovers properly. However, the biggest reason why we throw away so much food is because we don't eat it on time, and in many cases we just look at the date on the package rather than the contents, even though the date can be completely ignored. In February 2016, a supermarket opened in Denmark that sells only expired food. UK online network retail Approved Food sells "short-lived" foods that are approaching their expiration dates.

The problem is that there are too many date markings and it gets confusing. "In accordance with the law European Union, most products must be labeled “best before…(date)” or “best used by…(date),” explains the head of the control department food poisoning Food Standards Agency Kevin Hargin(Kevin Hargin). Food companies decide for themselves which labels and expiration dates to put on packaging, and they usually do this in collaboration with their scientists. “All of this is done taking into account the condition and quality of the raw ingredients, the processing method, the length and nature of the supply chain, and the storage process, both at retail locations and by consumers.”

“Using foods before their expiration date indicates they are safe to eat, and ‘best before’ labeling indicates the quality status of the food,” says a Food Standards Agency spokesperson. – Expiration dates are usually used to label fresh and perishable food products that may cause poisoning if they are past their expiration date. Best consumption guidelines are used for foods such as bread and confectionery baked goods, which are unlikely to cause poisoning if you eat them after the recommended date, although the quality of this product will be worse. The expiration date and recommended sell-by dates are indicated in order to help store employees when carrying out promotions.”

In February 2016, a supermarket opened in Denmark that sells only expired food.

Not everyone panics at the sight of mold spots appearing on the packaging of tomatoes whose expiration date has passed. You may well be the one who takes food out of the trash can and considers it “pretty good” when someone else in your family would have already thrown it away. You may also still have a sticky 20-year-old Tabasco sauce bottle or cans with an outdated brand on them in your home. It is quite possible that you never throw away the cheese, despite the fact that a significant part of its surface is covered with a green coating - you simply cut it off.

Should I worry about the dates indicated on the packaging?

“The advice is: don’t eat food past its expiration date,” says microbiologist and senior lecturer in food safety at Bath Spa University. Ian Haysom(Iain Haysom). – This is necessary because some foods carry a higher risk of poisoning than others. For example, meat and fish are likely to contain harmful pathogenic microorganisms, and lettuce or bean sprouts are less likely.” However, other factors can also greatly influence poisoning: for example, working condition refrigerator, or how strongly your body reacts to harmful bacteria. Some microorganisms, such as E. coli or salmonella, will not change the odor of the product. You can safely eat cheese or yogurt in a closed package that has expired. “But if you have children or sick people with you, then it is better to refrain from such a risk,” experts say. You can also extend the shelf life of some foods by cooking them and leaving them in the refrigerator or freezing them.”

Photo by Alamy, The Guardian

If fruits and vegetables have a date on them, this is more likely to be a recommendation for when they should be consumed than when they are best before, but this is only if they are sold in their raw form rather than as prepared salads or slices. This type of processed food products, according to Haysom, is already cleaned and moistened, which creates a kind of breeding ground for supporting the life and growth of any bacteria. “I had tomatoes that had been in the refrigerator for several weeks, and also apples that had been stored in the refrigerator for months,” the microbiologist gives an example. Labels recommending consumption can be completely ignored if they are on cans or bags of dry pasta. “Expiration” will, of course, affect the loss of taste and quality, but this will not affect health in any way. “A work colleague gave me a jar of oatmeal produced in the 1960s; I opened it and everything was fine,” Haysom recalls.

Angela Hartnett, chef and restaurateur:

– At work, since visitors pay money, we use only the best products, and if there is something of poor quality, we will not serve it. However, at home, I'm not about to throw countless lettuce leaves into the trash. I somehow had some pancetta left at home, and there was already a little mold on it. And there was nothing wrong with that, because it was smoked, canned meat. If I think something is expired, I throw it away, but if I'm sure there's nothing wrong with the product, I eat it safely. I won't throw something away just because the product's recommended sell-by date has passed. If it's something vegetarian and slightly wilted, I'd rather cook it than throw it away. Although I admit that not everything is so simple. I never know what to do with eggs - whether to keep them in the refrigerator or at room temperature. But eggs don't stay in my house long enough to worry about whether they're fresh or not. If I'm making pasta, I eat the leftovers the next day - I just add a little water and heat it up.

Ruby Tandoh, food writer and chef:

– There is a strong instinct of self-preservation in my family. We do not take unnecessary risks. My father led a lifelong campaign against licking batter from the mixing bowl: he saw salmonella and certain death in every drop. raw egg. My sister gave us her Christmas candy because the use-by date had passed a month ago and one of the candies had taken on the shape of a peanut. I, too, have inherited this wariness of expiration dates, which is actually not a very pleasant thing to admit when you work in the food world. If you work with food, it means you're around all the food, including the raw, smelly, and questionable aspects of it.

Expiration dates are typically used to label fresh and perishable foods.

If eggs are even a day past their expiration date, it's a real pain for me: to find out if they are edible, I hold them to my ear and listen to the sounds inside them, or immerse them in water to see whether the egg sinks or not. If everything looks ok, then I cook them, but very carefully and deep fry them. I want to be more rational in my food consumption. I want to learn how to just scrape the mold off food, cover my nose and eat. When testing recipes for my next book I have already taken several steps in this direction. A few wilted carrots at the bottom of the crisper drawer can make a nice addition to a spicy carrot and chickpea salad, rather than being relegated to the side dish or, worse, tossed in the trash. I'm not that hopeless.

Tamal Ray, baker, journalist for G2 publishing house, doctor:

– I am quite liberal in relation to the labeling “best used before...”, but even I have a limit. I was once visiting a girl who had prepared a huge pot of beef bolognese. She forgot to put it in the refrigerator. And the bolognese stood in the corner of the stuffy kitchen for three days, until a thick layer of mold formed on the food. This girl came into the kitchen while I was making tea and remembered that she had forgotten to remove the pan. Right in front of me, she removed all the mold and put the pan in the refrigerator. Not noticing my horror on my face, she invited me to try: “Would you like some?” I refused, I had a feeling of vomiting.

Photo: Tom Hoenig/Getty Images/Westend61

That's when I really pay attention to labels, when buying products. After that, when I'm already at home, I rely only on my feelings. If it looks and smells good and I feel like there's nothing wrong with it, I'll eat it. One of my friends has a completely different attitude: if the expiration date has passed, she throws it away. I remember well how she threw away the packaged, good-looking fish and cardboard box with still fresh grapes only because the marked date has passed. She argued that she was no longer a student and she no longer needed to eat from the trash can. I couldn't do anything about it. I just hate throwing away food. Moreover, even if the recommended consumption date has passed, we can still eat many foods. You just need to use a little imagination. Stale edges of bread can become breadcrumbs or croutons. Overripe fruits are good for cocktails. The only thing you have to be careful with is the meat.

Thomasina Miers, chef and journalist at The Guardian:

– I check food for smell and appearance, and if the food smells and looks bad, I throw it away. I found out that yogurt can be consumed for at least another week after the expiration date. I don't leave raw meat out for long, but I'm comfortable leaving leftover cooked food in the refrigerator for four to five days. I once had onions stored in the refrigerator for several weeks. At my parents' house we found a bottle of ketchup that was 10 years old and it was still usable. However, I am very careful with some products. The easiest way to get poisoned is raw chicken. Boiled rice is never stored in our refrigerator for more than one day, because harmful bacteria can grow there, but we can store fried rice.

This text is a translation of the article Emin Sarner (Emine Saner) which is published in the newspaperThe Guardian" Access date: 03/20/2016The text is published for informational purposes and does not reflect the opinion of the editors.

December 25, 2016 at 4:40 pm

Conspiracy theories. Expiration date of goods

• Geek Health

How does a manufacturer determine the expiration date of their product? For example, why does table salt have a shelf life of 1 year (365 days)? What happens to NaCl on the 366th day after expiration? What happens to a children's rubber toy after three years of use (the typical shelf life for rubber toys)? Why is 100-year-old wine being sold at auction for thousands of dollars? These questions are rarely thought about by people who are accustomed to looking at the expiration date of every product in the refrigerator and every product, as if these numbers mean something important.

The fact is that the date and time on the packaging make virtually no sense. The product begins to deteriorate the first second after its production, fruits and vegetables begin to decompose immediately after they are picked. The food consumed will be spoiled in any case.

What kind of dates do merchants indicate on packages?

What is "expiration date"

By definition from Civil Code, the shelf life of a product is the period after which the product is considered unsuitable for its intended use. After the expiration date, food products are considered unfit for food, medicines are prohibited for consumption, and consumer goods are regarded as being sold “without claims”. For individual goods the term "shelf life" is equivalent to the warranty period.

According to current legislation, retail chains are required to remove expired goods from sale and purchase a new batch of goods from the manufacturer. If it's large commercial network, then she enters into an agreement with the manufacturer that he will take back the unsold goods. If this is an ordinary store or individual entrepreneur, then the cost of goods is taken into account as an expense item - and is evenly transferred to all other goods that go on sale, that is, is transferred to the buyer. In any case, "expired" goods are destroyed or thrown away, be they food (even those that never spoil, see below) or other goods.

By the way, the seller is also obliged to transfer the goods to the buyer in such a way that they can be used for their intended purpose. before this period expires. So the seller withdraws from sale not only goods with an expired expiration date, but also goods with an expiration date that is coming to an end.

According to the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”, the seller is prohibited from changing the expiration date indicated on the label, packaging or in accompanying documents for goods, as well as to put into circulation goods whose expiration date has expired.

Why "expiration date" makes little sense

As already mentioned, products begin to deteriorate from the first second after they are produced or collected. It is important to understand that the degree of product spoilage depends more strongly on storage conditions, and not on storage time. Especially important factors- humidity and temperature.

Product quality experts explain that a product's shelf life actually has more to do with quality product, not to it nutritional properties or security. We are talking about optimal freshness, optimal taste and other requirements established by GOSTs and others regulations. Wherein established standards extremely conservative.

To provide for absolutely everything possible situations, manufacturers set expiration dates based on the worst-case scenario. That is, like the laziest and stupidest buyer, he will store the product in the worst possible conditions (within the limits of the conditions indicated on the label). Provided that it takes several hours to drive from home to the store in the heat and maximum humidity.

Ted Labuza of the University of Minnesota says that if done responsibly—if you put food in the refrigerator as soon as you get home— specified period The shelf life of milk and meat can be safely increased by three to seven days. When it comes to leafy greens, research shows that loss of nutritional value is reflected in loss of color. So if the greens turn yellow, it means there are few vitamins left in them. But if the greens look fine, then what's the point of looking at the printed expiration date?

Pasta or rice can easily be stored for a year without loss of taste, and in subsequent years you are also unlikely to notice the difference. On the StillTasty website you can study how long various foods can be stored and remain tasty. The difference with the official expiration dates is striking.

Unopened packages of cookies, flour, etc. are stored for months. Canned food is practically the safest food you can buy in a store. It is extremely difficult to spoil a canned product; it can be easily stored for five years in a cool place. In principle, if you protect the tin can from rust, the product can be stored normally for much longer than five years. And after this period, you will have to carefully listen to the sensations in order to catch any difference between this product and the “fresh” one.

Considering the absurdity of the very concept of “shelf life,” it is not surprising that manufacturers cannot decide on their standards and are constantly changing standards and terms. IN different countries act different rules, and even within the same country there may be regional differences. So, if the same milk is sent for sale in the state of Connecticut, then it must be affixed with a sticker with an expiration date of 12 days from the day of pasteurization. And if the same milk went to Pennsylvania, then 14 days.

Expiration dates on packaging, of course, stimulate sales. They were conceived in order to push customers to purchase fresh products and increase the manufacturer’s profits. But at the same time, they pose a threat to the consumer, giving rise to a false sense of security. Instead of judging the actual quality of a product by its smell and appearance, people blindly trust the date indicated on the packaging.

In general, if stored properly, there are products that

Products with expired or expiring dates can be eaten! To understand how long such products can be eaten after the expiration date, you need to ensure that the packaging is intact - once, and decide what kind of products they are.

I want to say that it is better to eat a natural product that has expired than one that is fresh according to the label, stuffed with E additives (preservatives, stabilizers, taste and smell enhancers, colored), with a normal sell-by date.

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Some people buy supposedly fresh products that are obviously made from rotten raw materials, the packaging of which has a huge expiration date on it. And, indeed: the product does not smell anything unpleasant, is beautiful in color, aromatic, juicy and perfectly preserved.
And I also need to add: if you buy products for 3 rubles per kg, take advantage of discounts, run after sales, you can really run into rotten meat with a normal expiration date.

Cheese, smoked sausage stuffed with preservatives, cheap pate, incomprehensible yogurt, jelly in a brick, and other products to which they did not hesitate to add preservatives have a shelf life of 2 months.
After the expiration date of such products, the “contents” of their packaging are stored for a long time.

All preservatives have an expiration date. This is the period during which they are able to perform their functions to prevent product spoilage. For example, sorbic acid is inactivated over time, and then the product that was preserved with it may begin to mold. Ascorbic acid may stop working because it also breaks down over time. Ascorbic acid is a preservative. Salt and sugar will not be destroyed in any case, and will perform their functions perfectly. Both are preservatives. The only question is what food is preserved in order to understand whether it can be eaten.

About the packaging.
If it is vacuum, without access to oxygen, then nothing will be done to the products for a long time, because only in the presence of oxygen (sometimes - sunlight) bacteria present in the product begin to actively multiply. Moreover, the product does not go bad - it turns sour, and even in this state it is quite suitable for food, after heat treatment, of course.

Let's say we have ham in a natural casing, the shelf life of which is 2 weeks (14 days). When we open the package, the bacteria contained in the meat (whether it is chicken, turkey, or pork) begin to actively multiply. The result is a sour smell and mucus on the shell. This does not mean that the product is unfit for food (rotten); this means that it is natural and contains few preservatives. If a product whose shelf life has expired remains in a closed package for 3-4 days, there will be nothing for it. After opening, the activity of bacteria will increase, nothing more.
Cheese in a vacuum, sausage, meat and other perishable products are perfectly kept fresh, even after their sell-by date has expired.

Composition of the product. If it is milk, especially honest sour milk, it is stored exactly as long as it is written on the package. In the summer - less, because there are unsuccessful transportation, bad refrigerators, etc. Sometimes milk with a normal sell-by date, after opening the package, can be immediately used for cottage cheese - it sours so quickly.

And a few words about refrigerators. In refrigerators in which air “walks” without frost, food is preserved much longer. This happens because it is more difficult for bacteria to reproduce.