The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has warned UK shoppers people are taking more risks with food safety as they try to save money and make their meals go further.
The research showed that 97 per cent of those questioned believed the cost of their typical shopping basket has gone up significantly in the last three years, with half of these (47 per cent) trying to make better use of leftover food. However, some people are ignoring use-by dates more than they used to, while others are keeping leftovers for longer than the recommended limit of two days in the fridge.
Bob Martin, a food safety specialist at the FSA, said: “Using leftover food is a good way of making our meals go further. However, unless we’re careful, there’s a chance we can risk food poisoning by not storing or handling them properly. During Food Safety Week we are encouraging people to view their fridge as their friend, and make the most of leftovers while staying safe.”
Food poisoning levels in the UK increase during summer with around 120,000 extra cases of illness from June to August. One of the reasons is that warmer temperatures cause any germs present to grow faster, which underlines the importance of getting leftovers in the fridge quickly.
According to the FSA’s research, people are also risking food poisoning by ignoring use-by dates more than they used to. Researchers found that a third of people were more likely to judge when food is safe to eat by its smell, look or how long it’s been stored, rather than by the use-by date.
Martin said: “It’s tempting to just give your food a sniff to see if you think it’s gone off, but food bugs like E. coli and salmonella don’t cause food to smell off, even when they may have grown to dangerous levels. So food could look and smell fine but still be harmful.”
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