Aldi announces major change to milk to combat food waste
Aldi is taking significant steps to combat food waste by eliminating ‘Use By’ dates from its fresh milk.
Instead, the supermarket will adopt ‘Best Before’ dates, excluding filtered milk, on milk bottles in all its stores across England and Wales. The implementation of these changes is expected to begin by the end of this year.
The move comes in response to waste reduction charity WRAP’s findings, which reveal that UK households waste nearly 300,000 tonnes of milk each year, with half of households discarding it due to the Use By date expiring.
Aldi recognizes that milk can often remain safe to consume beyond its Best Before date, provided it has been stored correctly and shows no signs of spoilage. To encourage responsible consumption, the supermarket will urge shoppers to perform a simple ‘sniff test’ to determine the freshness of their milk.
Liz Fox, Sustainability Director at Aldi UK, expresses the supermarket’s commitment to sustainability and food waste reduction, stating, “We are constantly working to be a more sustainable retailer and we are dedicated to preventing food waste wherever we can, both in our stores and helping customers throw away less food at home.”
The removal of Use By Dates is part of Aldi’s broader efforts to combat food waste, aiming to halve it by 2030. The supermarket has already eliminated Best Before dates from approximately 60 fresh fruit and vegetable products, such as apples, pears, citrus fruits, potatoes, carrots, and onions. Additionally, Aldi has recently introduced clear caps on milk bottles to enhance recyclability.
Furthermore, Aldi has joined forces with the food surplus app, Too Good To Go, on a national scale. Through this partnership, customers can purchase a ‘magic bag’ of food approaching its shelf life end for £3.30, containing at least £10 worth of groceries.
With these initiatives, Aldi continues to make strides towards achieving its sustainability goals and contributing to a greener future.
