Clearer date labels will help shoppers save money and stop perfectly good food being thrown away, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said today as Defra published new guidance for food and drink manufacturers.

The updated guidance will help ensure the right date marks are used on food labels to make it easier for shoppers to know when food is safe to eat.

Under the guidance, food packaging should only carry either a ‘use-by' or ‘best-before' date. ‘Sell-by' and ‘display-until' labels used for stock rotation should be removed to avoid confusion for shoppers, with retailers finding different ways of stock control.

Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said: "We want to end the food labelling confusion and make it clear once and for all when food is good and safe to eat. This simpler and safer date labelling guide will help households cut down on the £12 billion worth of good food that ends up in the bin."