A tool will help to decide the date of caducity and the one of preferential consumption of the foods from scientific criteria

The IRTA sets up the project BESTDATE, that wants to contribute to reduce the alimentary waste establishing the correct date of labeling of the foods.

To fault of easy tools to interpret to disposal of the elaboradores, to the hour to define the type of date sometimes prioritise  the commercial requirements and no the scientists.

In the market there are similar products with dates of distinct labeling, a fact that confuses to the consumers and causes 10% of losses of foods.

A third part of the foods produced annually in the world waste  (FAO, 2011). According to the EU, the causante of 10% of the alimentary waste is the labeling of the dates of preferential consumption and of caducity, that does that  descarten foods even being apt for the consumption. The experience of the Institute of Investigation and Technology Agroalimentarias (IRTA) in some projects evidence that the companies elaboradoras of foods often do not have of clear criteria neither of a methodology to establish the date of preferential consumption and that the durability established in foods no perishable many times does not obey to scientific criteria. This causes that they throw  foods when they still are safe and apt for the consumption. To put him remedy, the IRTA sets up the project BESTDATE, that will give like main result a tool based in scientific criteria so that the alimentary companies and the competent authorities can establish the date of labeling adapted for each food. Besides, in the frame of the project will give  recommendations on the typology of studies to establish his length.

«In the definition of the date of preferential consumption, sometimes, gives  priority to commercial requirements of the logistics and the distribution and no to the scientists, that consider the factors that determine the security and the quality of the foods during his useful life», explains Maria Dolors Guàrdia, researcher of the area of Alimentary Industries of the IRTA and manager of the project. «No all the foods caducan; according to the valid rule, only caducan those that can contain pathogenic microorganisms that during the useful life of the food can grow and/or produce toxins and that, therefore, can suppose a risk for the health of the consumer», remembers the researcher. Regarding the durability of the products, this «has to use a scientific base», signals.

In the year 2020, the European Authority of Alimentary Security (EFSA) made public a guide with the criteria to establish the typology of date that corresponds to a food. Even so, according to Guàrdia, «there are a lot of companies that desconocen or have difficulties to interpret it». To this does lacking to add that the majority of small companies Catalans do not have qualified technicians and/or an infrastructure that allow them establish the date of preferential consumption with objective criteria.

Inside the project BESTDATE, will design  a tool of support in the taking of available decisions on line, easy to use and of interactive character. Based in the tree of decisions of the guide of the EFSA, will integrate the criteria the factors that determine the date of labeling that has to carry a food, and that will contribute the scientific criteria on which decide if a product has to carry date of caducity ―by his implications in alimentary security― or if, contrariamente, the appropriate date is the one of preferential consumption. Besides, it will facilitate  to the companies of the alimentary sector a methodological guide to make the studies that allow to establish the date of preferential consumption from the identification of the factors that limit the quality of the product and of the parameters to monitor his quality during the useful life by means of the analytical physical chemistries or sensory corresponding. «Many of the tools of this guide will be based in the sensory analysis and will do that it was easier to establish the date in which the consumer no longer accepts the sensory quality of the product by means of criteria cientificotécnicos», explains Guàrdia. The version beta of the tool evaluated it PIMES and microempresas, as well as the competent authority and is foreseen that it was available in Catalan, Spanish and English in the 2024.

Date of caducity vs. of preferential consumption

The majority of products microbiológicamente very perishable or cool as they are the meat, the fish or the cool Milk, have date of caducity. This wants to say that, if they consume  once surpassed this date, can suppose an immediate danger for the health of the person that consumes them. Instead, other no perishable products like the dry legumes, the dry paste, the preserves or the cookies have date of preferential consumption, that is the date until which the food keeps his specific properties when it stores  of correct form. That is to say, can consume  once surpassed the date and keep on being safe for the consumption, and only can  see affected his sensory quality.

The environmental impact of the alimentary waste

estimates  that in the EU waste  88 million tonnes of foods to the year ―the equivalent to half quilogramo by inhabitant and day―, that in his production and distribution have generated 170 million tonnes of CO2 and have spent 261 million tonnes of different resources. The available data indicate that, in Catalonia, waste  35kg of foods per person and year, what involves some losses of 841 M€ annual or #€112 per person and year. In broadcasts of gases of effect invernadero, equivale to more than 520 one thousand equivalent tonnes of CO2. 

The project “BESTDATE” (ref. 9015-2067302/2021), it is an activity funded through the Operation 01.02.01 of Technological Transfer of the Program of rural development of Catalonia 2014-2022.