Monday’s stock check in a guesthouse kitchen: six tins of tomatoes a week past their best before date, two tubs of yoghurt on their use by date, and a bag of bread rolls from Saturday. A cautious cook bins all three. A careless one keeps all three. The right answer is different for each, and knowing why is one of the cheapest ways a hospitality kitchen can stop throwing money away.
Best before is a quality date: food past it may still be used or donated if it has been stored correctly and is in good condition. Use by is a safety date: food must not be used, served or donated after it. Sell by is for the shop’s stock rotation. South Africa’s labelling regulations (R146 of 2010) provide for these three date marks; R146 treats “expiry date” as another name for “use by”, but labels must use the words “best before”, “use by” or “sell by”. Getting the difference right, alongside stock rotation, forecasting and portion control, cuts kitchen waste without cutting corners on safety.
Food Loss and Waste in Foodservice and Hospitality teaches kitchen, buffet and stores staff to read date marks, judge food quality and safety, estimate quantities and reuse surplus safely, with shelf-life guessing games, spot-the-problem pictures and waste calculators: about 4 hours online, R649, with a proctored final assessment and a certificate.
Date labels and food waste: the key facts
| The law on date marks | Regulation 12 of R146 of 2010 (labelling regulations under the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act): best before, use by and sell by |
|---|---|
| Best before | Quality. After the date food may be stale or less tasty, but it is not automatically unsafe |
| Use by | The last date the food should be used, treated as the safety cut-off for perishable food such as fresh meat, fish and some dairy. Never use, serve, sell or donate after it |
| Sell by | Stock rotation for the shop. Not a guide to safety |
| “Expiry date” | R146 lists it as another name for “use by”, but regulation 12 requires labels to say “best before”, “use by” or “sell by”. Check which date is actually printed |
| Open life | “Once opened, use within 3 days” overrides the printed date once the pack is opened |
| South Africa | About 10 million tonnes of food lost or wasted a year, roughly a third of production (CSIR research) |
| Worldwide | 1.05 billion tonnes of food wasted in 2022, including inedible parts; food service accounted for 28% (UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2024) |
| Where hospitality waste comes from | About 45% preparation, 34% plate waste and 21% spoilage; about three quarters could have been eaten (WRAP, UK) |
What is the difference between best before, use by and sell by?
Best before tells you how long the food keeps its best quality. Use by tells you the last day it should be eaten. Sell by tells the shop when to take it off the shelf. Only use by is a safety cut-off.
| Date mark | What it means | Typical foods | What the kitchen does after the date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best before | Quality | Tins, dry goods, jams, crisps, frozen food, many dairy products | Check it: seal intact, stored correctly, looks, smells and feels normal. If so, use it first. Never change or hide the date |
| Use by | Safety | Fresh meat, poultry, mince, fish, some soft cheeses and yoghurts, ready meals | Do not use, serve, sell or donate. Freeze before the date if the label allows and you cannot use it in time |
| Sell by | Shop stock rotation | Bakery and fresh produce | Look for a best before or use by date as well, and judge quality |
For manufacturers deciding which date to print, see choosing a defensible use-by or best-before date, and the full guide to R146.
Can a kitchen use food after its best before date?
Yes, if it has been stored as the label says and is still in good condition, because best before is about quality, not safety. Check the seal, look, smell and texture, use it first, and throw it away if anything is wrong. Food past its use by date is never used, however good it looks.
Condition overrides the date in both directions. A dented, rusty or bulging tin is thrown away even if it is well inside its best before date, and mouldy bread is thrown away whatever the bag says. A sound tin of tomatoes a week past best before is fine.
How long do common foods keep in the fridge, freezer and cupboard?
Typical storage times, from the US Department of Agriculture’s FoodKeeper data, assuming a fridge at 4 °C or below and a freezer at −18 °C. A shorter date on the pack always wins.
| Food | Where | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| Raw chicken pieces | Fridge | 1 to 2 days |
| Fresh fish, such as salmon | Fridge | 1 to 3 days |
| Raw beef steaks | Fridge | 3 to 5 days |
| Cooked stew or soup | Fridge | 3 to 4 days |
| Opened sliced ham | Fridge | 3 to 5 days |
| Eggs in their shells | Fridge | 3 to 5 weeks |
| Tinned tomatoes or fruit, unopened | Cupboard | 12 to 18 months for best quality |
| Tinned beans or vegetables, unopened | Cupboard | 2 to 5 years for best quality |
| Raw mince | Freezer | 3 to 4 months for best quality |
| Whole raw chicken | Freezer | About 1 year for best quality |
Freezing stops bacteria growing but does not kill them. Food kept frozen at −18 °C stays safe; freezer times are for quality. Freeze before the use by date, label the pack with the date it was frozen, and thaw in the fridge.
What causes most food waste in hotels, restaurants and guesthouses?
Preparation and over-production, then plate waste, then spoilage. Research by WRAP in the UK found that about 45% of hospitality food waste comes from preparation, 34% is left on plates and 21% is spoilage, and that about three quarters of it could have been eaten.
That breakdown points to where the savings are. Spoilage is fixed in the stores, with rotation and date checks. Preparation waste is fixed with recipe cards, yields and forecasting. Plate waste is fixed at the pass and the buffet, with portion sizes and presentation. Measuring first shows which one matters most in your kitchen: weigh what goes into the bins for a week, separated into spoilage, preparation and plate waste.
Ten ways to cut food waste in a hospitality kitchen
- First expired, first out. Rotate stock by date, not by delivery, and put the shortest date at the front.
- Label everything you open or make with the product, the date and a use-by date. Day-dot labels make this quick.
- Order to par levels and check deliveries: refuse short-dated or warm stock at the door.
- Forecast covers from bookings, not from habit, and cook buffets in batches instead of all at once.
- Use standard recipe cards with portion sizes and yields, so that 50 portions means 50 portions.
- Serve on smaller plates. In a Norwegian hotel study, plates 3 cm smaller cut buffet food waste by about 20%, and a sign inviting guests to come back for more had a similar effect.
- Repurpose safely: stale bread into croutons and crumbs, vegetable trimmings into stock, ripe bananas into baking.
- Cool and keep untouched surplus correctly for staff meals, and freeze before the use by date.
- Donate safe surplus through an organisation that can keep it at the right temperature.
- Measure and share the results every week, so the team sees the difference.
Which surplus food can be reused, and which never?
| Can be reused or donated | Never reused or donated |
|---|---|
| Food that never left the kitchen and stayed at safe temperatures, cooled quickly, labelled and used within 3 days | Food that was served to guests or left on plates |
| Sealed stock close to, or past, its best before date and in good condition | Anything past its use by date |
| Yesterday’s bread, for croutons, crumbs or puddings | Buffet food that has been out for more than four hours, or for an unknown time |
| Clean vegetable trimmings, for stock | Damaged, bulging or leaking tins; mouldy soft foods |
Buffets and functions produce the most surplus, and the most uncertainty about how long food has been out. See food safety for caterers and events for the four-hour limit and how to log it.
Can hospitality businesses donate surplus food?
Yes, if it is safe. Donate only food you would be happy to serve, keep it at the right temperature, and label it with its name, the date it was made, storage instructions and allergens. Never donate food past its use by date, food that was served to guests, or food that has been out of temperature control.
SABS has developed a draft voluntary national standard for food donation and redistribution, SANS 2088, released for public comment in April 2026 (comments closed on 16 June 2026), covering how to keep donated food safe and traceable. Organisations such as FoodForward SA collect surplus food and deliver it to community feeding programmes. For a manufacturer’s view of the same controls, see donating surplus food safely.
What should happen to food that cannot be eaten?
Compost it, or send it to a registered organic waste service for composting or biogas, rather than landfill. Never send kitchen waste to pig farmers as swill: untreated swill spreads African swine fever, and animal disease rules prohibit feeding it.
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to eat food after the best before date?
Usually, if it has been stored correctly and is in good condition, because best before is about quality rather than safety. Check the seal, smell and texture first. Food past a use by date should never be eaten.
What does use by mean on food in South Africa?
Use by is one of the three date marks in regulation 12 of R146 and, in line with international (Codex) practice, is treated as the safety cut-off. It is used on perishable foods such as fresh meat, fish and some dairy, and the food must not be used, served, sold or donated after it.
Is “expiry date” a legal term on South African food labels?
Not as label wording. Regulation 12 of R146 requires “best before”, “use by” or “sell by”, although R146’s definitions list “expiry date” as another name for “use by”. People say “expiry date” for all three, so always check which one is printed.
What is the biggest cause of food waste in restaurants and hotels?
Preparation and over-production. WRAP research found about 45% of hospitality food waste comes from preparation, 34% from plates and 21% from spoilage.
Can leftovers from a hotel buffet be donated?
Not food that has been on the buffet or served to guests. Surplus that never left the kitchen and was kept at safe temperatures can be cooled, labelled and donated through an organisation that keeps it cold or hot as required.
Can kitchen waste be given to a pig farmer?
No. Untreated swill spreads African swine fever, and animal disease rules prohibit feeding it to pigs. Compost it or use an organic waste service instead.
How long does raw chicken keep in the fridge?
About 1 to 2 days at 4 °C or below, unless the use by date on the pack is sooner. Freeze it before then if you will not use it in time.
Which ASC course covers this
Food Loss and Waste in Foodservice and Hospitality is built for kitchens, buffets and stores: food safety versus food quality, date marks and open life, how long foods really keep, which foods can be reused or reprocessed and which never, recipe estimation and forecasting, safe donation, and measuring waste. It is packed with activities: guess-the-shelf-life sliders, spot-the-problem pictures in a cold room and a dry store, and a buffet quantity calculator. R649, with a proctored final assessment and a certificate.
For events, pair it with Food Safety for Caterers and Events, part of the Hospitality Short Courses Bundle. For manufacturers and FSSC 22000 sites, see ASC’s Food Loss and Waste Training, and for every accommodation and food service course, the Hospitality and Foodservice Training page.
Sources
- Food Waste Index Report 2024, UN Environment Programme
- Overview of waste in the UK hospitality and food service sector, WRAP
- Kallbekken and Sælen (2013), ‘Nudging’ hotel guests to reduce food waste as a win-win environmental measure, Economics Letters
- FoodKeeper app, US Department of Agriculture
- FoodForward SA