Today – Is the food in your freezer more than 2 years old?
Recent research has shown that 62% of British shoppers throw frozen from fresh food out because it no longer looks appetising. A further 60% throw this food away because they can’t remember how long they’ve had it for.
The research, conducted by Cool Cookery as part of a wider campaign encouraging consumers to make friends with their freezers, also revealed that 78% of shoppers buy more chilled food than they need to and freeze it at home, only to then throw most of it away (I do this! 🙁 )
Also, the research found that use by dates and buy one get one free (BOGOF) deals are the main reasons why people freeze fresh food at home – 77% claimed that they can’t use all their food before its use by date and 70% admitted that it was because they often buy more than they need to on BOGOF deals.
74% of British shoppers have at least £75 worth of food stored in their freezer yet still purchase fresh food regularly
Brian Young, director general of the BFFF said: “Our research has shown that freezing fresh food in the home often leads to food waste. To prevent this, we’re encouraging shoppers to head more regularly to the frozen aisle as commercially frozen food is maintained in an optimal condition and its packaging and labelling make use by dates and cooking instructions easy to follow.
“By putting older items at the front and newer items at the back, shoppers can regularly use and replace frozen food, as well as keeping track of the items you already have to make shopping trips more organised.”
Other results showed that shoppers have an average of 24 items stored in their freezer and 10% have items that are older than two years.
In particular, one respondent admitted to still owning chicken nuggets that they had bought in 1993. (ICK!)
Is the food in your freezer more than 2 years old?
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