Morrisons to replace ‘use by’ dates on milk with ‘sniff test’

The retailer will instead use ‘best before’ dates on most of its own-brand milk (Picture: PA)

Morrisons will scrap ‘use by’ dates on most milk items later this month, encouraging shoppers to use the old-fashioned ‘sniff test’ instead.

From the end of January, packaging on 90% of the supermarket chain’s own-brand milk will only display ‘best before’ dates as part of an anti-food waste drive.

Milk is the third-most wasted food or drink product in the UK, with 85 million pints poured away due to consumers following the ‘use by’ date alone, according to the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) charity.

Research has found pasteurised milk can be used days after the date, and the Food Standards Agency now backs a common-sense sniff test to tell whether it’s gone off.

Scientists say most supermarkets add a wide margin to their ‘use by’ dates for fear of being sued by customers who suffer rare cases of food poisoning.

Ian Goode, senior milk buyer at Morrisons, said: ‘Wasted milk means wasted effort by our farmers and unnecessary carbon being released into the atmosphere.

‘Good quality well-kept milk has a good few days life after normal ‘use by’ dates – and we think it should be consumed, not tipped down the sink.

‘So, we’re taking a bold step today and asking customers to decide whether their milk is still good to drink.

Almost 90 million pints of milk are thought to be wasted due to cofusion over the ‘use by’ date (Picture: PA)

‘Generations before us have always used the sniff test – and I believe we can too.’

Experts warn consumers not to drink milk with an obvious unpleasant odour.

In cases when it’s difficult to difficult to gauge by scent, the milk can be examined for lumps or slight yellowing.

Excessive souring can also be detected by either microwaving a glassful for 30-60 or adding a splash to hot water, then swirling it and checking whether it goes lumpy or gooey.

Shoppers will be encouraged to trust their noses, though other methods can be used (Picture: Bloomberg)

Pouring a few drops on a teaspoon of fresh baking soda can also indicate souring if it produces bubbling. Baking soda does not generally react to fresh milk.

Marcus Gover, of Wrap, said: ‘I am delighted that Morrisons is the first UK supermarket to take this important step to help reduce household food waste – it shows real leadership and we look forward to more retailers reviewing date labels on their products and taking action.’

A spokesperson for the Food Standards Agency said the ‘best before’ label is sufficient for milk, though not for all food or drink products.

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