In France, nearly 10 million tons of edible food are thrown away each year according to Ademe (the Environment and Energy Management Agency). To limit this food waste, the giants of mass distribution, such as Carrefour, Auchan, Intermarché, Leclerc, etc. have signed the DLC pact. This aims to make consumers aware of the difference between the use-by date (DLC), which, when exceeded, represents a health hazard, and the date of minimum durability (DDM), which can be exceeded. The risk being that the product is less good.
But some brands go further, such as Super U, which has decided to postpone certain dates. “It is well known in the profession that yogurts can be consumed without risk several days after their expiry date”, affirms Thierry Desouches, communication manager at System U, at Parisian, Saturday August 20.
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“There is no question of mortgaging the health of the consumer”
“Since 2018, we have postponed the use-by date for 223 references (yogurts, charcuterie, etc.), over an average of fourteen days, after rigorous tests on the durability of the items”, he explains. Before specifying: “As for the products for which this would represent a danger, such as minced meat or fish, we will not touch them. No question of mortgaging the health of the consumer.”
Carrefour has also pushed back the deadlines for more than 500 products and even removed them on certain items with an MDD. “We removed everything on oil, vinegar, sugar and its by-products”, indicates Bertrand Swiderski, director of sustainable development for the group. Initiatives which will have to be accompanied by an awareness campaign aimed at consumers, but above all by changes in European regulations. This prevents the complete deletion of DDMs.
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