As an aside from this, I've often eaten food past the sell by date with no
ill effects.

From http://www.packagingdigest.com/artic...986755909.html

The survey also revealed that 10% of people reported eating perishable foods
two days or more past their 'use-by' date, which can lead to food poisoning.
The 'use-by' date is the date that food can be used up to, provided it has
been stored as described on the label.

The 'use-by' date is not to be confused with the 'best before' date which
provides an indication of the quality of the food. It is okay to eat food
after a 'best before' date but NEVER after a 'use-by' date.

Kathryn Baker, Food Standards Agency Northern Ireland said "National Food
Safety Week gives us a great opportunity to highlight practical steps people
can take in order to reduce the risk of illnesses such as Listeria.

"Listeria can be very serious and almost all people who get food poisoning
from this bug end up in hospital. Over 60s are particularly at risk, the
number of cases of Listeria in this age group has more than doubled in the
UK since 2000, and so our campaign focuses on food hygiene advice for this
particular group of people."

The report also highlighted that 55% of those surveyed did not know the
correct temperature for their fridge and of those who claimed they knew, 43%
were incorrect. Keeping fridges at 5°C or less by using a fridge thermometer
can also help with minimising the risk of food poisoning in the home.

A Bingo game called "Beat the Bingo Bug!" has been developed for use with
older people's groups that get together socially and is a fun way of
highlighting the importance of food hygiene. The game will be sent to these
groups across Northern Ireland with the help of district councils and
organisations such as Age Concern Help the Aged NI for playing during
National Food Safety Week.

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