Use stock rotation labels to improve food hygiene

If the nature of your business involves selling packaged food, it is important that your products have a use-by or best before label. This is vital for making sure that you do not sell food that has potentially gone off and can cause food-borne illnesses. Stock rotation labels are just one of the ways you can guarantee you are always on top of which products are safe for sale and which may require taking off the shelves.

What is the ‘Best Before’ date?

The best before date is the date that you guarantee the quality of the food product. This does not mean that the food cannot be used past this date, but that it is best before it. Essentially it is letting people know that the quality of the food decreases after this date. It is your responsibility to make your customers aware of this. Best before labels appear on a huge range of frozen, dried, tinned and other foods.

How can you control stock rotation?

It is always a good idea to have stock rotation labels at hand if you are in the food industry. Using coloured labels or date labels to keep track of any food that should be discarded or used imminently can reduce the risk of your customers contracting any food-borne illnesses from your products. One bad product can cause serious issues and repercussions, so something as simple as stock rotation labels can really help you to keep on top of what is fresh and what needs taking off the shelves.

What should you label?

The following types of food should always have a best before date that you have added:

• Open chilled food: should always include an instruction for shelf life once the product has been opened
• Chilled food you have prepared: you should always include the date of the food made as well as the time period given for the shortest shelf life
• Prepared or purchased frozen food: only freeze food which has two days left of its shelf life outside the freezer, and then the frozen food should be given a one month shelf life
• Food that has been defrosted: always relabel any food which has been previously thawed and advise against refreezing

As well as labelling the best by date, you should make sure to have stock rotation labels at hand. They can be colour-coded, which makes them more visible so it’s easier for you to tell the status of a product.

At Hague we have a team of experts who can advise you on the best labelling methods for your food products. We can offer you advice about the best way to use stock rotation labels, as well as the options available to you.

To find out more, fill in our enquiry form. We will be in touch when we have your details to set up a free consultation.