Use by dates

Bell peppers are expensive here in the US and when I don't use them all, they spoil in the fridge. Packages come with several, so I've started freezing half of them as soon as I bring them home.
Rinse, dry, cut up in strips and (plastic) bag them. Freezing changes the texture but not the flavor or color. They defrost somewhat squishy and soft, but they'll cook up the same as if they were fresh.
I no longer throw away my Bell Peppers and freezing works for me as I seldom eat them raw anyway.

I never take any notice of 'use by' or even 'sell by' dates, let alone 'best before'. No problems so far (that's 72+ years..)

Even if they have lost a bit if nutritional value they will add taste and fibre to a dish. With fruit and veg the dates are for stock control, when you buy some fruits eg kiwi often they are still not ripe by the date on the packet. British apples and potatoes are harvested in the autumn and are kept to the next year, store carefully and ignore the dates. Would anyone eat a green potato if it was within the date on the bag?
Best not to put potatoes in the fridge if they get too cold the starch changes and they taste sweeter. Obviously if something is mouldy you don't eat it.

I am pretty sure that tins have a Best Before End Of date rather than a Use By date (still in bed, so I can't be bothered to go and look ) so it's just an indication rather than an instruction. Obviously if a tin is blown or rusty, the contents would go in the compost or the waste food bin, depending whether it's vegetable or meat/fish.

I agree with all who say to use the peppers unless they are slimy or mouldy, and even then, don't put them in the bin unless you really have no other choice of disposal method.

I use my eyes, nose and common sense to judge whether any food item is no longer fit to eat - not labels.

For fruit and veg I go by appearance, smell etc. For meat, dairy I ditch them as I have studied infection control as a nurse. Coffee, tea, spices I would use a bit longer but they lose flavour rather than going off. Tins - again use smell, appearance as they do last longer than use by date.

I would take no notice of use by dates I never do, your own nose and eyes can tell you if something is ok to eat
Yes deedum those dates are there for a good reason, the reason is to make you throw it away and buy more
decay can be seen the pepper will become soft and wrinkly as it gets old just like us even wrinkly ones are not bad for you but if they become soggy or slimy throw them away

I wouldn't use them, those dates are there for a reason, a day or so but it's a long time over.
Unseen decay could be present by now.

Well I’m the worlds worst. I stick to all sell by dates. I have a stomach condition so just won’t risk going even one day over,years ago when no sell by dates I just went along eating willy nilly but since got ill I won’t take the risk

Not really needed grannylynn65

I really don't take any notice of sell by dates, and only take notice of use by dates when you're talking about meat or fish. If they smell and look okay, then they are okay. As for vegetables, as long as they look and smell okay, use them, even if they are slightly wrinkly, they won't kill you and can quite easily be used in some way. There are now use by dates on cans for goodness sake! When they found Scott of the Antarctic's camp, there was canned food there that was still perfectly edible. What annoys me though is that when I was young, if bread went off, it went hard and could become a bread pudding. Now it just grows alarming green mould? What is that about?

Ffs

If they look alright and taste okay I would just eat them. I regularly eat tomatoes and carrots that are past their dates. I come from a time when you did not waste food so if vegetables look a little tired I make them into soup.

Yes I'd eat them

Sell by & Use by dates are responsible for most of the food waste. I was brought up before most things had dates on them.

Look, taste & smell.

Most veg can be used up in soups, stews or stir-fries

If greens have gone yellowish then their goodness has gone but otherwise I go by look and smell for all veg

blueskies - The new potatoes I bought from M & S said to put in the fridge. When I opened them, still in date, there were about 8 that were rotten and stinky. I usually buy them from Tesco and put them in a potato bag where they keep for weeks (and they cost half the price).

Has anyone else noticed that use/sell by dates on packaged fruit and veg seem to be getting closer? I'm sure I used to be able to buy produce with another 4 or 5 days to go, now the dates seem to be just 2 or 3 days hence. Supermarkets have a cunning plan to make us bin more and therefore buy more perhaps

Yes.....whatever happened to touch...smell... and good old common sense

If still in original sealed packaging, will be protected by nitrogen until it's opened. (The nitrogen - inert, colourless, odourless, etc - displaces oxygen within the packaging, to postpone oxidation. When it's opened the nitrogen disperses hamlessly into the atmosphere. Look up nitrogen in fruit and veg packaging, or similar.) So will be fine if they look and smell ok.

I would apply my usual eye, nose and touch tests and then go straight ahead and use them or anything else for that matter.

If soft and feel a bit wet, I wouldn't use. Otherwise use your instincts and use them. Don't pay much attention to use by dates on fruit and veg personally.

I use ‘smell by date’ not ‘sell by’ or ‘use by’. If it smells OK it is OK.

Use by or Sell by dates are just guidelines to protect the daft. If they look and smell OK, they're fine.

Unless they look or smell bad, I'd use them with no qualms. I have my fridge set to 3 centigrade (a tad lower than general recommendation) and I find things keep for longer as a result.
Same with 'best before' dates on jars and tins. I wouldn't eat mouldy jam or anything from a 'blown' tin or that smells wrong but otherwise, no worries.
The only thing I'm very careful about is cooked rice which, according to my GP is responsible for most cases of food poisoning because of Cereus bacillus which isn't destroyed by boiling, unlike most bacteria.