No date on ALDI strawberries?

Worztron

Hi.

Has anyone here bought ALDI strawberries? I see no date on them. The closest thing is 'DU: 2902'. Another pack said 'DU: 2907' -- which maybe 29-July?

Thanks.

whomitconcerns

Display until maybe?

Graham

Worztron wrote: »

Hi.

Has anyone here bought ALDI strawberries? I see no date on them. The closest thing is 'DU: 2902'. Another pack said 'DU: 2907' -- which maybe 29-July?

Thanks.

Guessing they both should be DU:2907 but one got smudged:

DU -> Display Until perhaps??

Worztron

whomitconcerns wrote: »

Display until maybe?

Hi whomitconcerns.

Possibly. But what on earth could 2902 mean?

Worztron

Graham wrote: »

Guessing they both should be DU:2907 but one got smudged:

DU -> Display Until perhaps??

Hi Graham.

No, it was a clear number 2.

Thoie

DU:xxxx is quite possibly the supplier.

They're strawberries - when they go off they turn to mush and grow mould. If they're not mushy and/or mouldy, they're fine. If they're a bit soft, but not mouldy, you can still use them up in lots of ways - blend them into drinks, or icecream or make jam.

kittyclaws

I read before it's the week number - so 29 would be week starting July 18th - 02 would be 2nd day so 20th July. Cryptic!
Maybe email to double-check...

foggy_lad

Week 29 Day 2/7

This is the day they were picked/packed and as they are strawberries there is no way of calculating an expiry or use by date as they are so perishable, best used on day of purchase is the general rule for fresh soft fruits.

mickoneill31

http://www.cheapeats.ie/2012/10/09/lidl-and-aldis-mysterious-best-before-dates-on-fruit-and-veg/

Seems like 2902 is week 29 day 2. So last Tuesday maybe?

Macy0161

Worztron wrote: »

Hi.

Has anyone here bought ALDI strawberries? I see no date on them. The closest thing is 'DU: 2902'. Another pack said 'DU: 2907' -- which maybe 29-July?

Thanks.

Don't think they date any of their fresh fruit/ berries. I have a recollection that the code is the week number. 29 is the week number (for last week) and then 02 and 07 the day of that week (don't know when they start their week though). I also believe it is Display Until rather than a use by or best before.

Worztron

foggy_lad wrote: »

Week 29 Day 2/7

This is the day they were picked/packed and as they are strawberries there is no way of calculating an expiry or use by date as they are so perishable, best used on day of purchase is the general rule for fresh soft fruits.

Thanks all. That's sorted it.

NIMAN

One of my pet hates for Lidl and Aldi fruit and veg, lack of dates on them.

Padraig Mor

NIMAN wrote: »

One of my pet hates for Lidl and Aldi fruit and veg, lack of dates on them.

They're not needed - if they're good, use 'em; if they're not, don't.

I recall reading an article some time ago about dates on fruit and veg. Apparently sticking use by dates on them is a relatively recent thing, driven by profit. Tesco or one of the big chains found that putting a BB date resulted in people throwing far more fruit and veg into the bin (because it was 'gone off') - and of course bought more!

dudara

foggy_lad wrote: »

Week 29 Day 2/7

This is the day they were picked/packed and as they are strawberries there is no way of calculating an expiry or use by date as they are so perishable, best used on day of purchase is the general rule for fresh soft fruits.

^^ This.

Aldi print labels with the date of picking. Therefore, you can extrapolate when they're likely to go off. To be honest, it's probably a good thing. The lack of a use-by date means that people will assess the fruit & veg critically, rather than throwing it away because a date on a label said so

To ensure that you're getting the freshest possible, pick produce with the latest date of picking.

Here's an article from CheapEats on this whole topic.

NIMAN

Padraig Mor wrote: »

They're not needed - if they're good, use 'em; if they're not, don't.

I recall reading an article some time ago about dates on fruit and veg. Apparently sticking use by dates on them is a relatively recent thing, driven by profit. Tesco or one of the big chains found that putting a BB date resulted in people throwing far more fruit and veg into the bin (because it was 'gone off') - and of course bought more!

But there is some fruit boxed, like strawberries and blueberries, that you can't get a look at until you open it when you're home, and these are the ones I try to get the longest date on.

Having said that, I have found the quality of fruit in general from most shops is poor these days. My kids eat a lot of strawberries and blueberries, but often I might buy a box which has a USE BY date 4 days away, yet when I open them there is already mushy ones at the bottom.

I tend to stick to M&S for my fruit, easily the best quality and worth paying the extra for. I avoid Lidl, this notion about their great F&V is an urban myth in my experience.

A Dub in Glasgo

I am starting to avoid LIDL and ALDI for fruit and veg. Definite issue about quality and dates. Bag of spuds bought yesterday in ALDI had about 50% bad ones. Back to Morrisons, Sainsburys, M&S & ASDA for my fruit and veg from now on

L1011

A Dub in Glasgo wrote: »

I am starting to avoid LIDL and ALDI for fruit and veg. Definite issue about quality and dates. Bag of spuds bought yesterday in ALDI had about 50% bad ones. Back to Morrisons, Sainsburys, M&S & ASDA for my fruit and veg from now on

Lidl and Aldi UK are deep discount supermarkets and no more. In Ireland they have taken very different approaches. Comments about their UK arms are pretty much irrelevant here - they are completely different and share no management.

Lidl Ireland is trying to be a general supermarket, hence the prevalence of branded product, bakeries, newspapers, etc.

Aldi Ireland are trying to be a cheap Waitrose.

Spanish Eyes

Berry Fruits last in the fridge until it grows hairs or gets the greenies (mould)

I am still alive having eaten them not knowing what the BBF date is. They looked fine and tasted fine.

Look, smell and enjoy.

WTF? Buy and use your nose and eyes.

Say you buy in the markets anywhere. Is there a BBF date on the fruit/veg put in the bag off the market stall?

deadanonymau5

On the CheapEats site, they say the first two items are have the format where the first 2 numbers are the week and the last two are the day. Then for the 3rd item, he says the first 2 numbers are the day and the last 2 are the week

L1011

The week should be pretty obvious at this time of the year, there not being a Day 30.

prinzeugen

L1011 wrote: »

Aldi Ireland are trying to be a cheap Waitrose.

Really!!! Aldi will never be a Waitrose.

I have noticed any Lidl/Aldi I have been in stinks of rotten fruit/veg.

endacl

NIMAN wrote: »

One of my pet hates for Lidl and Aldi fruit and veg, lack of dates on them.

If I got a best before date on veg I wouldn't go near them. They're either fresh or they're not.

bigbrotherfan

From my experience, Lidl seems to be better than Aldi, for fruit and vegetables. The date thing is annoying though.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

I checked in my local greengrocer and Dunnes last Friday. Neither had dates on any strawberries. And I don't need dates on the likes of strawberries anyway. I have eyes.

rubadub

Padraig Mor wrote: »

Tesco or one of the big chains found that putting a BB date resulted in people throwing far more fruit and veg into the bin (because it was 'gone off') - and of course bought more!

I love dates on tesco stuff, as they sell it off when its perfectly fine. I just finished some kiwis yesterday which were "out of date" about 6 or 7 weeks ago. They have these "ripen at home" fruits and mine were only ripe now.

I see people in work throw out stuff as a rule, as though by the stroke of midnight the apple becomes toxic.

Worztron

rubadub wrote: »

... I see people in work throw out stuff as a rule, as though by the stroke of midnight the apple becomes toxic.

All the old fruit turns into pumpkins.

Kat1170

Most people that give out about no date on F&V in Lidl/Aldi etc. will probably pay a premium to get F&V in a ''farmers Market''.
Where guess what ?? No dated F&V there either.