Food labelling and date coding in commercial kitchens.
Clear food labels and sensible date coding help kitchen teams identify food, follow storage instructions, control shelf life and avoid using food after a safety-critical use-by date. The legal labelling rules depend on how food is packaged and supplied, while internal kitchen labels should support your food-safety system rather than rely on a made-up universal shelf-life rule.
Practical guidance from TKEG (The Kitchen Efficiency Group), built around everyday UK hospitality compliance and kitchen operations.
What is the difference between a use-by and best-before date?
A use-by date is about food safety. Food should not be eaten or supplied after its use-by date, even if it looks or smells acceptable. UK guidance states that it is an offence to sell food after its use-by date.
A best-before date is primarily about quality. Food may remain safe after that date if it has been stored correctly and is otherwise suitable, although quality may deteriorate. Kitchen teams should therefore understand which type of date they are checking rather than treating every printed date in the same way.
What should an internal kitchen label contain?
Internal labels are a practical control for opened, decanted or prepared food. The information needed depends on the product and your food-safety system, but a useful label can identify what the food is, when it was opened or prepared, the relevant discard or review date, and any storage or allergen information needed by the team.
Internal date coding should be clear enough that another member of staff can make the correct decision without guessing. Labels also need to work with stock rotation, traceability and allergen controls where relevant.
Is there a universal three-day rule for prepared food?
No single shelf-life rule is suitable for every food prepared or opened in a commercial kitchen. Safe shelf life depends on the food, process, packaging, storage temperature, manufacturer instructions and the controls in the business's food-safety management system.
Do not automatically replace a manufacturer's instructions with a generic three-day label. If packaging says, for example, to use within a specified period after opening, that instruction and the original use-by date both need to be considered. Where a business establishes its own shelf life, it should have a sound basis for doing so.
What happens when packaged food is opened?
Opening a product can change how long it remains suitable. Follow any instructions such as 'refrigerate after opening' or 'use within X days of opening', while also respecting the original use-by date where one applies.
An internal 'opened on' label can make this easier to control. The new internal date should not be used to extend food beyond a safety-critical manufacturer's use-by date without an appropriate validated process.
How should prepared food be date coded?
For food prepared in-house, decide a safe storage period through your food-safety management procedures and apply it consistently. Consider ingredients, cooking and cooling processes, handling, contamination risk, storage temperature and how the food will be used.
Record or label enough information to support the decision in service. If food has been outside its intended controls, has an uncertain preparation date, or cannot be shown to be safe, simply applying a fresh label is not an appropriate corrective action.
What are the rules for food sold to customers?
Customer-facing labelling is different from an internal prep label. Most prepacked foods require prescribed information, normally including the food name, ingredients and allergens, net quantity, a use-by or best-before date where required, storage conditions where necessary and food-business information.
Loose food has different requirements. Food that is prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) is also subject to specific rules, including a full ingredients list with the 14 regulated allergens emphasised within it. Businesses should identify which category their product falls into before deciding what information the customer must receive.
How do date coding and allergens connect?
A container can be correctly date coded and still be unsafe if its identity or allergen information is unclear. When food is decanted, prepared or stored away from its original packaging, make sure the team can reliably connect it to the correct recipe, ingredients and allergen information.
Do not use vague labels that could cause two similar-looking products with different allergens to be confused. The labelling system should support the business's wider allergen controls.
What should staff check during daily stock rotation?
A practical stock check should identify expired use-by food, products approaching their relevant date, opened products with internal coding, damaged or unclear labels, incorrect storage and food whose identity or history cannot be established.
Where a problem is found, take corrective action rather than simply changing the label. That may mean disposing of food, checking the original packaging or records, correcting storage, reviewing a process or retraining staff if the same problem keeps occurring.
Practical guidance, checked against official UK sources.
TKEG guidance is written for practical hospitality use. Where a topic involves regulation, official schemes or workplace safety, businesses should also consult the current guidance from the relevant authority and apply it to their own operation.
TKEG is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Food Standards Agency, HSE or a local authority. Official guidance and legal requirements take precedence where applicable.
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Common questions
Can a restaurant use food after its use-by date?
Food should not be used or supplied after its use-by date. A use-by date relates to safety, and food can be unsafe even when it looks and smells normal.
Is best-before the same as use-by?
No. Use-by relates to food safety; best-before primarily relates to quality.
Does every opened food get three days?
No. There is no universal three-day rule suitable for every opened or prepared food. Follow manufacturer instructions and your validated food-safety procedures.
Can I put a new label over an expired use-by date?
A fresh internal label should not be used to disguise or extend an expired safety-critical use-by date. Shelf-life decisions need an appropriate food-safety basis.
What is PPDS food?
Prepacked for direct sale food is packaged at the same place it is offered or sold to consumers and before it is ordered or selected. Specific labelling rules apply, including an ingredients list with allergens emphasised.
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