Tesco Ireland is not following the lead of its parent company in the UK by removing “best before” labels from pre-packed fruit and vegetables in order to minimise food waste. “Best before” labels tell consumers that while a product can be used after a certain date it may it suffer in terms of quality . While the move has been welcomed by food waste campaigners in the UK it will not be replicated in the Republic in the short term. Irish households bin an average of €700 worth of edible food each year and one million tons of food, worth more than €700 million, is thrown out each year across the State. The Tesco Ireland spokeswoman said despite its failure to roll out this initiative in the Republic it remained “committed to tackling the issue of food waste” and she pointed to its commitment “that no food safe for human consumption will go to waste in Tesco Ireland stores by 2020”.

Source: The Irish Times May 22, 2018 16:07 UTC