A TikTok content creator has uncovered the hidden meaning behind supermarket codes on fruit and vegetables, helping shoppers pick the freshest items. Grace Forell, known as The Sustainable Spender, shared her findings in a video explaining how to decode labels after many UK retailers removed 'best before' dates to reduce waste.
According to Forell, products without a best-before date often feature internal codes. For example, a Tesco cucumber labelled 'H09' indicates the produce was packed on 9 August, as 'H' corresponds to August (A for January, B for February, etc.). She advises that the later the date, the fresher the produce.
Asda uses a similar system, while Sainsbury's codes end in 'J' or 'S', which should be ignored. The digits between these letters represent the date in DDMM format. For instance, peppers labelled 'J1008S' were packed on 10 August.
Forell emphasised that these codes relate to freshness and quality, not food safety, and urged shoppers not to discard food solely based on these dates. Her tips come amid the cost-of-living crisis, with food prices rising 5.2% in July compared to last year, adding £275 to the average household's annual food bill.
