| Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, The University of Reading
Food Labelling in the UK - A supporting material page |
Products with a recommended life of more than 3 months can use a date stating 'best before end'. This is the case for many products including frozen foods. Here are two examples':
The first example is taken from a Confectionary product. There is a clear statement, 'Best before end;' followed by the month and year in numbers, '03 2022'. The box also contains the storage instructions, 'Store in a cool, dry place'. The manufacturer has also added various codes allowing them to investigate should there be quality problems associated with the pack.
The second example is from a pack of Frozen ice lollies. Here there is the statement 'Best before end / Lot' and, printed above this, are the date and a Lot code. The date is the month and year, '07.2023'. Simple storage instructions are also given, 'Keep frozen':
On the main information panel on the back of the pack, the full storage details are given along with a reference to where to find the 'best before end date':