M&S has become the latest retailer to remove use-by dates from its own brand dairy products in a bid to reduce food waste.
The upmarket retailer will replace use-by dates with best before dates across its Select Farms British and organic fresh milk from this week.
M&S says a combination of improved shelf life and a better overall quality of milk meant customers can “use their judgement” before throwing away the milk.
The move is part of M&S' overall target of reducing food waste by 50% by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2040.
The supermarket chain now joins Morrisons who swapped use by dates for best before dates on their own brand milk last year.
At the same time, Co-Op also ditched the use by dates on its own-brand yoghurts.
Milk is the third most wasted food and drink product in the UK, after potatoes and bread, according to Wrap, a recycling charity.
A typical household throws away 18 and a half pints a year, for a combined total of 490million pints, worth more than £300million.
Climate charity WRAP’s director of collaboration and change, Catherine David, said: “The main reason is not drinking before the use-by date. By changing its British and organic fresh milk to a best-before date, M&S is instantly helping its customers save money and cut waste by giving them more time to consume the milk they buy.”
“This type of change to labelling is fundamental in helping people reduce household food waste, which currently tops more than 6.6million tonnes each year across the UK.”
Three years ago, WRAP launched new guidance to urge more businesses, redistribution organisations and charities to look beyond the best-before date.
It also said that some products that traditionally had a use-by date could instead carry a best-before date.
Since then, major supermarkets have taken not and have started implementing the suggestions.
In 2020, Morrisons scrapped use by labels across its own-brand yoghurts and hard cheese ranges - Tesco announced earlier this year that it was to do the same thing.
Last year M&S removed best-before dates across more than 300 fruit and veg lines, in a move designed to encourage customers to use their judgement on what is still good to eat.
Asda followed suit soon after and scrapped the label on 250 of its fresh fruit and veg products.
