Do you buy the discounted almost expired food at the store?

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imagenscape

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Sometimes when milk or bakery items are close to the best used by date a store around where I live will sell it at a discounted price. I did buy a package of cookies that way once, they were a bit stale but still good. I have never been able to bring myself to buy the milk though. My mom buys the discounted items a lot, but I'm worried that I might make my family sick or something if I do this.
 
Most dairies guarantee their product will be safe to eat 5 days after the sell by date. If you know you family will eat it up in 5 days, you are quite safe there. I have purchased yogurt this way a number of times. One of the stores I frequent will put 99cent stickers on things like tubs of yogurt when they need to sell that day. I have never had a problem but I have saved many a dollar.
 
I would not do this with cakes, bread or milk. However, if it is a can of peas, tomato sauce, tin soups or anything like that, I would take a chance at it. I am also a bit skeptical when it comes to things like corned beef, luncheon meat or sausages. So, it really all depends on the item that is being discounted. I would take a chance with vegetables if I can see they still have a fresh look about them, and if I plan to use them the same day.
 
Almost all of the time, if it is something I need. I rarely follow best before dates or take much notice of them at home either. I also have never suffered from food poisoning, not has my husband!
Just last week I purchased some heavily discounted safflower oil with a date of March 2014. Instead of being £5.99 it was £0.99 for 500ml.
BUT, I will only purchase it, if it is something that we will use and were planning to get, or likely to get in the next week or two.
 
I do this only when I am sure that I will be able to finish the product before the expiration date. I do not want to buy so many then just end up wasting them.
 
Every time I go to the supermarket, the first placeI look is the reduced for quick sale section. I won't buy anything that looks damaged but I choose vegetables and fruit that look no different from those at full price. As long as I use them within a few days they don't go off.

I don't buy meat or fish products but I will buy any reduced packaged goods I can use. There is no way that something will suddenly change within a day just because it's reached a certain date.

I get to try things I would not normally buy, when they are reduced, and I save a lot of money by looking in reduced sections.
 
I do sometimes buy discounted baked goods, canned goods, dry goods or produce if I'm sure I'll be able to use them or freeze them by the expiration date.
I don't see any reason to pass on a deal as long as the food is going to be used before it goes bad.
 
I actually frequent the local bread store for all our bread and snack cake items. I get them at a huge discount and some have a long expire date while some have close date. I have 3 meals a day to provide plus school lunches and work lunches for a family of 5. There's rarely any waste of these discounted items. Why pay more when I can get more for less?
 
Even though there has been much talk about items being good well pass the expiry date I never buy anything close to said date. Perhaps I should say I never buy most things. I like to give myself enough time to use the item. It's also the reason I am not encouraging my husband who does most of the grocery shopping to ease off of buying too many things in bulk.
 
I do purchase items that are discounted and near their expiration date on the shelf. The food is still good and there is no reason to believe that I may get sick from the products. Grocery stores are good at making sure that they are not going to sell a product that is going to make someone sick.
 
I always buy them if they are items I can use. Often I will freeze the items or cook them then freeze them. There is so much scaremongering about expiration dates and most manufacturers are generous with them and items will extend beyond that date. It's best before, as a suggestion only. You can get food poisoning from food that hasn't expired that is not cooked properly, so people need to be educated on food.

The important thing is to smell it, because milk that may have a sell by date that is in the future, but has not been stored correctly and can go off. The same for bread, I have seen moldy bread in supermarkets because it was stored somewhere incorrectly.
 
http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/19/health/sell-by-dates-waste-food/
http://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible-innovations/expired-foods-safe-eat2.htm

I had heard about the study of the forty year old can of corn that scientist researched and found to be still good for eating. I had also heard and read if it smells good, it is good. Even with all that I have read I am still not big on buying any thing close to the expiry date. It would have to be dirt cheap and something I plan on eating right away.

I was going through my cupboard only today and there is some mayo that has changed color. I know that has to be bad and ready to toss. I do hate wastage and it's going to kill me to toss it.
 
Tossing food out is the worst feeling in the world because it is literally wasted money. I have learned from my mom to write the expiration date in a permanent marker on my pantry food so that I can see boldly when something is about to expire. I can quickly find something to make with it at that point.
 
Today is Boxing Day in the UK so there were lots of reductions on food. I bought a Yule log for a pound which is best before today, but it will last for a few days as I can't eat it all in one go. We bought a cauliflower for 32p that is best before today and that will last a few days in the fridge as well.

My father found an unopened packet of pancake mix from 2 years ago and made them and we ate them and we were fine, as it was only flour, slat and some bicarbonate of soda; so as long as you are sensible you will be fine. Think of the time when there were no sell by dates, people had to judge for themselves what was good and bad.
In addition, if a homeless person had the food, would they quibble over something that was a few days past it's sell by date? That or hunger? As long as there is no mold, I tend to think it's fine. Dates can be deceiving, after all a computer stamps it on, so it could be computer error as well. People sometimes mix the made dates with the sell by dates, as some products stamp when they were made too.
 
imagenscape said:
Sometimes when milk or bakery items are close to the best used by date a store around where I live will sell it at a discounted price. I did buy a package of cookies that way once, they were a bit stale but still good. I have never been able to bring myself to buy the milk though. My mom buys the discounted items a lot, but I'm worried that I might make my family sick or something if I do this.
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I use to but not anymore. I will say that most of the foods that we think are fresh are not as fresh as we think, but just be aware that the longer the self life the more added chemicals are usually present. I just eat plant base/vegan foods and the beauty of raw produce is that you can pretty much look at it and tell if you can eat it or not, but canned or even frozen is different.
 
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