Asda has become the latest major supermarket to announce that it will scrap 'best before' dates across hundreds of fresh fruit and vegetables products.
The Big Four grocer will remove the dates from a host of nearly 250 packaged fresh produce products, including citrus fruits, potatoes, cauliflowers and carrots.
Shoppers will begin to see the change roll out in stores starting from September 1 in a move that the supermarket hopes will reduce plastic waste and help save money.
The dates will now be replaced with a new code that can be scanned by store colleagues to ensure the highest quality and freshness is maintained.
The move will be supported by specialist green grocers in over 250 stores who have received training in all aspects of Asda’s fresh produce operation, including where products should be stored to maintain freshness and quality.
Asda has said that they will also be providing additional guidance on packaging to help customers understand how they can better store and prepare fresh food. They will also provide handy hints and tips that can help reduce plastic waste.
The supermarket's packaging change comes after research from climate action group Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) revealed that the average family throws away £60 worth of food and drink every month.
WRAP has also said that the 'best before' dates are unnecessarily contributing towards climate change which is caused by households throwing away food.
Andy Cockshaw, Head of Technical at Asda IPL, said: “Reducing food waste in our business and in customers’ homes is a priority and we are always looking at different ways to achieve this.
"We know for customers this has become more important than ever in the current climate as many families are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis and are looking to make savings wherever they can.”
They are the latest supermarket to scrap 'best before' dates from the packaging of fresh produce in a bid to help households tackle food and plastic waste.
Premium supermarket chain Waitrose recently announced that they would be scrapping the dates from nearly 500 fresh products starting from September. Meanwhile, M&S also confirmed they were scrapping the dates from over 300 lines of fruit and veg.
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