The European Union (EU) may scrap mandatory ‘best-before’ dates on long life foods after several member countries blamed the labelling for millions of tons of food being wasted every year.
EU agriculture ministers discussed a document that stated that the best before labels were inappropriate for certain foods like rice, hard cheese, pasta and coffee.
The document estimated annual losses of 89 million tons in Europe.
Speaking at a meeting of government ministers and officials, Dutch agriculture minister Sharon Dijksma said the labels have nothing to do with safety but with quality. We think citizens can make sure themselves if, for instance, rice is still usable.
