Quality dates vs safety dates
UK food carries one of two kinds of date, and they mean very different things. A best-before date is about quality — after it, the food may not be at its peak but it is still safe to eat. A use-by date is about safety and appears on perishable items such as fresh meat, fish and dairy — do not eat food after its use-by date.
Short-dated stock simply has less time left before its date than a supermarket usually wants on the shelf. When that date is a best-before, the food is safe well beyond it.
Why short-dated food is cleared cheaply
Retailers and wholesalers work to tight shelf-life rules and can only hold so much stock. When a line gets close to its best-before date, or a batch is surplus to what they can sell in time, it is cleared at a discount so it reaches people instead of going to waste. That is the deal you get as a buyer: the same product, a much lower price, in exchange for using it sooner.
How to store and use it well
- Follow the storage instructions on the pack — cool and dry for ambient, chilled for fridge lines.
- Freeze anything you will not get through in time; freezing pauses the clock on most foods.
- Plan meals around the shortest dates first so nothing is wasted.
- Use common-sense checks on quality: look, smell and texture.
How ClearanceFood handles dates
We list best-before (quality) stock and never anything past its use-by (safety) date. Every listing shows the best-before window, storage type and quantities, so you always know how much time you have. Read our companion guide to best before vs use by dates for the full detail.