How to decipher the secret supermarket codes & change the way you shop to guarantee your fresh food last longer

The Sun

2 days ago

HAVE you ever noticed mysterious letters and numbers on your fruit and veg labels?
A bargain hunter has revealed they're not random, and they actually secret codes which reveal how fresh the items are.
5
5
Once you learn to decode them, you'll never accidentally buy older produce again.
Grace Forell, who runs The Sustainable Spender, shared: 'Learn the 'secret' codes to help you find the freshest fruit + veg at the supermarket.
'In the absence of a best before date, using these codes can help you find the freshest fruit & veg at the supermarket.'
First up are Tesco and Asda, whose 'freshness date' is a letter to represent the month, and a number for the date.
Grace explained: 'The letter correlates to the month and A=January, B=February, etc, so right now we're in H for August.
'The number is the day.'
Meanwhile, at Sainsbury's, the freshness date is hidden between a J and an S, and the numbers in between reveal the day and month.
The money expert shared: 'At Sainsbury's, all the codes are bookended with J and S, so ignore these letters and look at the numbers in-between.
'This is the freshness date as DDMM.'
Morrisons keeps it simple with the first letter showing the month, followed by the day as a number.
Five tips to feed your family for less and save on your supermarket shop
On her @graceforell account, she explained: 'So 'A' is for August, 'O' for October, and so on.'
In conclusion, she added: 'Use this as a guide – but DON'T be put off by food sitting in your fridge or cupboard that has gone beyond the date on this code.
'This is not a use by date, it's simply a freshness guide.'
Many people were hugely impressed with her supermarket hack, with one saying: 'Omg.'
5
5
LASTING LONGER TRICK
The price of groceries seems to go up every month - and it can be frustrating when items go off before you've eaten them.
However, there are some clever and easy tricks to making your food last 'three times longer' so you don't waste any cash, according to a savvy mum.
Lyssa Louise, who posts under @lyssa.louise.m, uploaded a video with her hacks, which has racked up 6,000 likes.
She shared: 'I'm gonna show you how I keep all my fruit and veg lasting three times as long as if you just chucked it in the fridge.
5
'The main thing is getting everything out of these little plastic bags.'
Her first tip was to remove mushrooms from their plastic wrapper and to put them in a paper bag so it 'absorbs all the moisture'.
This helps to stop them 'from going slimy.'
Next up she recommend that you 'keep all your jars', such as jam or pasta sauce when they are finished.
Lyssa advised: 'Once something runs out, just keep hold of it, wash it out, and keep it.
'Put your berries, your tomatoes, and things like that in jars.'
How to save on your supermarket shop
THERE are plenty of ways to save on your grocery shop.
You can look out for yellow or red stickers on products, which show when they've been reduced.
If the food is fresh, you'll have to eat it quickly or freeze it for another time.
Making a list should also save you money, as you'll be less likely to make any rash purchases when you get to the supermarket.
Going own brand can be one easy way to save hundreds of pounds a year on your food bills too.
This means ditching "finest" or "luxury" products and instead going for "own" or value" type of lines.
Plenty of supermarkets run wonky veg and fruit schemes where you can get cheap prices if they're misshapen or imperfect.
For example, Lidl runs its Waste Not scheme, offering boxes of 5kg of fruit and vegetables for just £1.50.
If you're on a low income and a parent, you may be able to get up to £442 a year in Healthy Start vouchers to use at the supermarket too.
Plus, many councils offer supermarket vouchers as part of the Household Support Fund.